Until The End Of Time
by AUFaberry
Summary: Futuristic Faberry AU fic. Quinn/Rachel romance.
1. Earthquakes

Until The End Of Time

Disclaimer: I own nothing. These characters belong to the creator of Glee and Star Ocean Til The End Of Time.

Pairing: Rachel/Quinn

Rating: M

Chapter One

Earthquakes

Rachel stretched out her arms, yawing and letting out a sigh as she fell back into one of the chairs in the Grantier Resort Hotel Lobby. As her small body sunk into the chair her tense muscles immediately relaxed and she closed her large brown eyes, drifting away into a daydream.

"Here you go!" Jesse said walking up to the small diva with a drink in each of his hands. He threw one toward her, and she caught it, a little surprised to see the young man standing in front of her, his torso exposed, clad in only swim trunks.

"Hello, Jesse. You startle me. I thought that you were going down to the beach in order to take a swim?"

"I was waiting for you, but you never came. You said that you were going to play a few games and then head right down."

She caught the large digital clock in the lobby with her eyes, realizing that she had told him she would be down hours ago. Groaning out she turned her attention back to Jesse, an apologetic look on her face. "I am so sorry, Jesse. I did not plan on staying for such an extended period of time; I just got sucked into the fight."

"Yeah, well, that's what I thought happened." He said with a laugh, brushing his curly hair out of his face as he looked Rachel over. "Didn't you say that you had tons of homework you had to do before we came to Hyda?"

Rachel stood to her feet and with conviction; she lifted her head high and proud. "Yes, and I do indeed have quite a bit of homework, but I was fighting so well today! I leveled up multiple times and I think that I am truly becoming prepared for any future fight we may encounter." Her eyes shimmered with excitement.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm proud of you." He said with a roll of his eyes. Honestly, Jesse was not angry with Rachel; he just grew irritated with her at times. She could be so strong-willed when she set her mind to something, she never stopped until she got it, and he both loved and hated her for it. When it came to her singing career he loved her for it, but now that she was risking her life on a daily basis, it was a little bothersome.

"Someone is in a grumpy mood today." She said, nudging his exposed abdomen.

"What do you expect, Rachel? You have been spending all of your time in this battle simulator. You would rather be in there then spend any time with me."

Rachel cocked her head to the side, a smirk on her full lips as she tried to catch his gaze. "Jesse?"

"What?"

"You are not mad, are you?"

"I'm not mad." He was nearly pouting at this point and it was adorable.

"Do you want to head down to the beach now?" She asked him.

"No, thank you. I already swam enough, while somebody I know was having the time of her life, playing in a simulator all by herself."

Rachel laughed a little at the pout that formed on his bottom lip and then she walked in front of him, forcing him to finally look at her. She pleaded with the young man. "Then perhaps you would like to take a walk through the hotel? It could be fun; we could go on an adventure! What do you say?" Her eyebrows knit together and when he looked as if he were going to decline she added. "Please? Pretty please?"

"Hmm, well, if you want to hang out with me that badly, I guess I can't really say no."

"Great!" Rachel's smile widened. "Then let's get going! Time's a wastin'!"

Jesse laughed at his friend, following her as she started out of the lobby and into one of the hallways. "Okay! But, Rach I need to get dressed."

O

Rachel waited impatiently on the other side of the door, wishing that Jesse would hurry up and get ready. He always took longer than her to get dressed. Which was ridiculous considering that she had an entire two hour routine in order to get prepared for her day.

"Hurry up Jesse, you always take so long to get ready!" She shouted through the door.

Finally he opened the door and flashed her a smirk, now wearing a nice outfit and smelling fresh and clean. "Oh, come on Rachel, you know you are just as big of a diva as I am." He laughed. "Besides, you kept me waiting at the beach looking like a moron forever, so it serves you right."

"I see how it is." She smiled and laughed a little. "Well, if it is any consolation, you look rather dashing."

"Thank you." He said before ruffling her dark hair.

Rachel ducked away from him and pushed his side which caused Jesse to laugh loudly. Once he had composed himself he held out his arm. "Shall we?"

"We shall." She nodded in confirmation, linking arms with the taller man allowing him to lead the way through the hotel. It was a beautiful hotel, and Rachel knew that it would be a fun little adventure to go on. They did this at every stop.

O

Rachel and Jesse had explored a good majority of the hotel and now they were making their way into the entertainment room. This was where the live entertainment stayed, the circus performers, the hotel singers, anyone who entertained the people staying at the hotel.

A lively blonde approached the two of them; she had sparkling blue eyes and pigtails. Her attire was that of a belly dancer. She was far taller than Rachel.

"Whaaat? Who are you? This is the Pierce's dressing room!" She cocked her head to the side. "Oh, I know you! You want my autograph, don't you! Ah well, gotta keep the fans happy! Usually, I'd be pretty mad if someone just came barging in like that, but you're so cute! I'll make an exception this one time!"

Rachel was taken aback by the enthusiasm the other woman had, and her full lips fell open and eyebrows knit together as she looked up at Jesse. He seemed to be equally confused. Looking back to the other girl she smiled politely. "Ah, umm… You said that you are the Pierce's correct?" She had no clue who the group of entertainers were, but she did not wish to hurt the blonde girl's feelings.

"What? You didn't know our troupe's name? Don't go forgetting it, now! Say, what's your name?"

"Rachel, But—"

"—I'm Jesse." He interrupted Rachel, flashing the young woman a charming smile.

"Right." The girl said simply before walking around Rachel looking her over, she was wearing an argyle shirt with a plain white back. She smiled as she pulled out a black marker and leant in to write on the back of Rachel's shirt. "To my darling Rachel, From the Fairy of Illusions, Brittany S Pierce." Putting the cap back on the marker she smiled proudly. "All done!"

"Hey!" Rachel shouted out, pulling away, hoping that her shirt had not been ruined. It was one of her favorites. "You cannot just draw on someone's shirt, it is unacceptable behavior!" Brown eyes met blue that instantly filled with sadness. It made the diva feel bad.

"Huh?" Brittany asked confused. "What? I thought you wanted my autograph?"

"Nobody said anything about wanting an autograph." Jesse pointed out.

"Huh?" She seemed genuinely confused and it baffled both Jesse and Rachel, they did not understand how she could not comprehend what they were telling her. "But, I thought… Hm. Then you must want Lord Tubbington's, or maybe mama's? Or my Papa's?"

"No, I am sorry to inform you—" Rachel started, pausing to remember the other woman's name. "Brittany, we are not here looking for anyone's autograph."

"Huh? Well, what are you then, a saleswoman? Nah, come to think of it, you look like the kind of girl who has never done an honest day's work in her life. I know! You're here to collect on a loan! You're too early! That loan's good until next month, they promised!" Brittany shouted out, shocking the two standing before her.

Rachel's eyes widened twice in size and she quickly attempted to backtrack out of the conversation. "No, no! Who are the Pierce's, anyway? And what do you mean when you say that you are the Fairy of Illusions?"

"Hm, okay, so um are you two just like lost or something?"

"Well, we are not really lost per say—" Rachel started.

"Oh no! You're robbers!"

"No!" She shouted quickly, not wishing to have security come and attempt to take them away for crimes they were not going to commit. "We are not robbers either."

"Then, what are you? You're not one of my fans, you're not here to collect on our loan, you're not lost. So what do you think you're doing barging into our room like this?"

"Well, I apologize for barging into your room, I had not intended upon doing so. We were simply taking a little walk, looking around the hotel." Rachel said.

"A walk?" Brittany asked.

"Yes, a walk."

"I didn't think barging into someone's room was called taking a walk. I thought that was for burglars, or lost kids, or stalkers, or groupies, or—"

"Alright! Perhaps we were a bit lost." She interrupted the blonde who seemed that she could possibly go on for hours naming off various reasons why someone would barge into a room.

"Let's just get out of here, Rachel." Jesse said with a nod toward the door.

"I think that would be for the best." Rachel offered the taller woman a smile.

"So, you were lost then? That explains everything." Brittany said with a smile and a shake of her head, her smile fell a little as she added. "I thought you were my very first fan… oh well, it's not like I've even performed yet, so it did seem a little strange I guess."

"You are a performer?"

"That's right. We're the Pierce Troupe, and we bring you a fleeting vision of the future. I'm your fairy guide, Brittany S. Pierce. We're a circus troupe and I am sort of like the dancing host."

Rachel watched as the blonde announced herself and she could not help but notice how proud the other woman seemed of her job, it was admirable, and she was always one to support the arts and dance. She was an aspiring singer after all. "Oh, so then this shirt with your signature is going to be worth something someday?"

"Of course! It's the first autograph I ever signed."

"The first?"

"Tomorrow's my first show, so yeah; in like six months… you could pretty much buy a whole planet with that shirt." Brittany informed the short brunette.

"Did you hear that Jesse?" She turned to look up at him; he was wearing an amused grin. "Isn't that amazing, an entire planet." For a moment she thought. "I wonder what I could do with an entire planet. Thank you for this shirt, I will have to take great care of it."

"Are you making fun of me?" She asked in a monotone voice.

"No, most certainly not. I believe you, I am sure that you will be wonderful on the stage."

"Oh, then thanks. You made me smile so I think I'll give you a present, since you are my first fan." Walking over to her vanity she collected a few tickets and turned to give them to Rachel. "Here you go."

"Tickets?" Rachel stared at them in confusion.

"Yeah, our show's tomorrow. You'd better not miss it. After you see us do our thing, you'll want to treasure that autograph for the rest of your life."

"Thank you very much; it would be my honor to witness the show. I look forward to it."

"Awesome, now can you guys get out of here. I've got to get dressed. See you later."

O

"Seriously, Rachel? Games again? You were just playing! Keep playing these games all the time and you will turn into a brainless musclewoman." Jesse said with a sigh, throwing his head back dramatically as they approached the game simulation room.

A smile spread across the woman's face as she looked to her best friend. "It is actually extremely engaging and entertaining, why don't you give it a try Jesse? You could find that you enjoy it as well."

"Isn't this a combat simulator? Doesn't that mean you have to fight?" He asked with a look of disgust on his face, he would rather dance or sing any day. "That isn't really my thing."

"Oh come on now, it isn't dangerous or anything." Rachel said tugging on his hand, attempting to drag him into the game room.

He rolled his eyes. "Okay, fine, if you say so."

"Then it's settled!" She skipped into the room excitedly. "We will start at an easy level since you are a beginner and you should probably choose a character that uses magic and fights from a distance rather than one that fights up front."

Jesse nodded. "Yeah, it won't hurt, will it?"

"Don't worry. The beginner's level doesn't hurt at all, really."

"Alright, I'll give it a try I guess."

Rachel activated the console next to the door, the room resembled an elevator. As she typed in something, the walls lit up and a robotic voice began speaking all around them. Jesse could not pinpoint which direction the voice was coming from.

"Welcome to the Battle Simulator. Please set Battle System parameters."

She typed in the beginner level then turned to look at her friend; he nodded signaling that he was ready. "Computer, start."

Again the computer spoke. "Player One: Rachel Berry. Character: Sword Master Adonis Klein. User Level: AAA. Player 2 Jesse St. James. Character: Flare Witch Ceal Femina. User Level: E. Battlefield: Remote City of Listia. Monster Level: E. Setup complete. Continue?"

"We are ready."

"Preparing to commence. This Simulation System may abort a game if it detects that a player's safety is at risk."

"I am aware, just start."

"Confirmed." The computer spoke up. "Commencing game."

O

After the first battle, Jesse was already feeling worn out as he stretched out his aching limbs. He could not imagine what it must have been like for Rachel, fighting with the sword up close. "Damn, that actually really wore me out."

"But, wasn't it so much fun?"

"It wasn't too bad, I guess." He shrugged his shoulders, looking down to straighten his clothing out in order to look presentable.

Rachel gauged his reaction and could tell that while he did not absolutely hate the simulator, he did not appear to have really liked it. Also, he was straightening up, which signaled that he wanted to leave and get back out to the hotel. She was a little disappointed; they usually shared all interests in common. "What do you say that we stop for now and go get a bite to eat or something? You look fairly exhausted from that battle."

"Yeah, I didn't expect a game to take so much out of me."

Just as they were preparing to leave the simulation room, a rumbling could be felt beneath their feet, nearly knocking them both to the ground. A siren sounded loudly in their ears and the computer started to speak all around them. It was terrifying. "Level two tremor detected. The system will be temporarily deactivated for your safety. We apologize for any inconvenience."

Rachel steadied herself before turning to look at Jesse with confused eyes. "An earthquake?"

"It seems so."

"But, that does not make sense. Hyda IV is a stable world with no tectonic activity. There shouldn't be any earthquakes.

Suddenly there was another violent rumbling. Both teenagers screamed out.

The computer again spoke. "This is an emergency alert. Hyda IV is currently under attack by unidentified spacecraft. All civilians should follow immediate evacuation instructions on the nearest console. I repeat: all civilians should follow immediate evacuation instructions on the nearest console."

Rachel looked around the simulation room frantically, not understanding what had happened. "Computer! What is going on!" She shouted out.

"Remote Station number seven, Hyda III, and Hyda IV are currently under attack by unidentified ships. Remote station number seven has scrambled its own ships to mount a counterattack, but they are outnumbered and therefore unable to provide evacuation assistance to Hyda IV." The computer informed her.

"An attack by unidentified ships!" She screamed out to the computer, looking over to catch Jesse's horrified eyes. They had never been put in a situation like this. What could these unidentified ships have in them? Humans? Aliens?

"Standby for video display."

With that, the walls of the simulation room transformed into a video screen and Rachel and Jesse watched intently as a red battleship flew through the air and an explosion destroyed some nearby buildings. The town was crumbling before their very eyes and they were still on the planet, they needed to escape.

"I—I don't believe it." Rachel mumbled out under her breath.

The computer spoke up again. "As an emergency measure, all transporters have been directly linked to the Evacuation Terminal. Please commence evacuation by following the established route."

Jesse appeared to be even more scared than the smaller diva; he ran his hands through his curls and turned to look at her. "Rach?"

"Don't worry, Jesse. We just have to stick together and we will be alright."

"I hope so."

For a brief moment, Rachel wondered what her fathers were doing at that very moment. She hoped that they would be able to escape safely. "Come on, let's go."

O

Authors Note

Thank you all for reading.

Please leave me some reviews if you like it!


	2. The Great Escape

Until The End Of Time

Disclaimer: I own nothing. These characters belong to the creator of Glee and Star Ocean Til The End Of Time.

Pairing: Rachel/Quinn

Rating: M

Chapter Two

The Great Escape

A short-haired Hotel Employee stood in front of the transporter room. When Jesse and Rachel approached her, she spoke. "Due to the state of emergency, all transporters have been redirected to send guests to a special floor, where a large transporter waits to take you to the Emergency Shelter. After the arrival of all guests at the shelter has been confirmed, the transport jammer located in the evacuation facility will be activated. Please evacuate in an orderly and speedy fashion."

The teenagers nodded their heads before climbing into separate transporters, within seconds they both appeared in the Emergency Shelter.

"Hey, look, it's my dads!" Rachel shouted out as the two men approached them.

"I am glad you are both here." Hiram said, wrapping his arms around his petite daughter. Holding her protectively, LeRoy joined in on the hug.

With a bright smile of relief Rachel spoke up. "I am so happy to see you guys, I was so worried."

Finally, she pulled away from her fathers in order to address the situation around them, knowing that they would be more aware than she herself or Jesse. "What is going on, dad? Is Aldian attacking?"

"Hm…" Hiram pondered on it for a moment before shaking his head. "No, probably not Aldian. From the looks of their weapons, it is most likely—" He paused.

"Most likely, what?" Rachel questioned.

"Never mind that sweetie; we must get out of here. Come on, let's go!"

O

A soldier ran up to the group, he was dressed up in armor with a helmet on. "Please wait here." He told them.

"Is something wrong?" Hiram inquired.

"There's a long line to use the transporter up ahead. You'll have to wait your turn here."

"Hm, I see." He looked to LeRoy and then to his daughter before smiling. "I suppose we have no choice, we will wait, then."

Another soldier ran toward the group. "Damn!" He shouted out through his helmet. "How'd they get in this far?" He turned his attention to Rachel's group. "Hurry up and get going! Keep moving forward!"

Jesse pulled on Rachel's arm. "Come on, Rach, we got to get out of here."

There was a loud noise and Rachel turned, brown eyes widening at what she witnessed. There was a large robotic soldier headed toward them. LeRoy stared at it before whispering out. "Hiram?"

"Yes, it is as I suspected."

"What are you talking about?" Rachel asked her fathers but they did not answer her. Instead they told her and Jesse to run, to get out of the way of the machine.

"Dad, daddy—"

"—just get out of here Rachel!"

"But—"

"—get moving now, protect her Jesse! And don't worry about us, we'll be fine! We'll meet you two at the Evacuation Facility soon."

"Promise, Dad?" Her full lip quavered.

"Promise!"

O

While running away from the robots, Rachel and Jesse found themselves surrounded by five or more of the soldiers. "We're surrounded!"

Suddenly something destroyed all of the robots. Rachel and Jesse stared, mouths open in shock as the large machines fell to their knees before them in a matter of seconds. "Hey, Rach, Jesse. You guys okay? You hurt?" A familiar voice cried out.

"Is that—" Jesse started.

"—Brittany?" Rachel asked trying to locate the blonde woman.

"Yeah, it's me." She said wiping the sweat from her forehead as she walked out into their vision. "I came to check out what all the racket was about and found you guys in trouble."

"Thank you, for the help."

"No problem! But we should get outta here. There'll be more of those things coming! It's already a complete disaster over that way. C'mon let's get going!" Brittany waved her hand signaling for the others to follow her down the hallway.

Rachel knit her eyebrows together and worry covered her face. "A complete disaster? But, my fathers!" Irrationally, she turned in order to run back toward where she had left her parents, but Jesse stood in the way.

"Hey, wait a sec! Rachel! Forget it! Didn't you hear Brittany? It's too dangerous back that way."

"But, I can't just—" She tried to move around him, he blocked her path again.

"Forget it Rachel."

"Come on you two. I already told you it was too dangerous!" Brittany screamed out as she ran back toward the two of them.

"Please help me stop her; she says she's going back." Jesse told the blonde entertainer.

Blue eyes widened. "What? Back there?"

"Dad and Daddy are back there! I have to go and help them!" Rachel moved to run back through the hallway, finally dodging Jesse only to be stopped by the tall blonde who held her back. She stared up into Brittany's eyes with pleading brown, tears rolling down her naturally tan cheeks as she spoke. "Please? You have to let me go and help them. Please, just move out of my way."

"I can't let you go back there, you'll die." With that, Brittany lifted the small diva up in her arms carrying her in the opposite direction.

Rachel squirmed around attempting to escape, but the dancer was actually extremely strong. "I insist that you let me go! Let me go!"

"Look, we are all going to die if we don't get out of here." Brittany said simply in a monotone voice, ignoring the other girl's pleas for help.

O

The three teenagers took the transporter to the next area, in which they were greeted by another soldier. He smiled at them and spoke in a robotic voice. "Welcome to Iruba Shelter Number Five. This is an evacuation shelter located underneath Hyda IV. Please wait in your assigned rooms until the rescue ship arrives." Rachel listened to him closely, wondering if the soldier had a personality or if he had been programed to say what he was saying.

"You are allowed to move freely about the facility, but there are some restricted areas. Please refer to the consoles or ask the nearest official for detailed instructions." With that the soldier gave the group a small bow.

"Thank you." Rachel said in a soft whisper, she could feel the weight of sorrow and could taste bile in her mouth. Her nerves were making her ill; she just wished that she could see her fathers again.

"I'm gonna get outta here and look for my troupe." She paused looking to Rachel. "Cheer up." With that, the blonde dancer had disappeared in search of her family.

"Rach…" Jesse said.

"Shall we go and find our room?" Rachel asked, nonchalantly. It was bothersome.

"Yeah, of course." He paused, linking his arm with hers and pressing a gentle kiss to the top of her head. "I'm sure you parents are okay. Don't worry too much."

"Let's just find our room Jesse."

The soldier stopped them and told them. "Oh, one second, please? You've been assigned to room #506. Remember that."

Rachel nodded.

"I expect that the rescue transports will be here soon. Please try to relax and wait."

"Thanks." Jesse said to the Soldier before leading the way toward their room, reading over the door numbers, knowing that Rachel was too far gone to help him look. He could not blame his best friend, she had always been close to her fathers, she loved them more than anyone in the world, and now there was a chance she would never see them again.

Upon entering the room they heard the voice of an older man. "I'm just glad that everyone is okay. Alright, time to discuss our business plans, hmm?"

"What? Rachel?" Brittany asked as her eyes landed on the brunette woman, apparently they would be staying in the same room together.

O

"Ahhh, your parents." The older man said, he was undoubtedly Brittany's father. Most of the troupe looked a lot like the blonde; they were probably all related to each other.

"Ah well, what can you do, eh?" One of the other men asked. Rachel bit down on her full bottom lip, glancing down at her fidgeting hands as she thought over all that she could have done, she knew that she could have done something more. "Hey, at least you're still alive, kid."

"Don't say that." Brittany scolded the young man.

"No, it is quite alright." Rachel forced a smile on her lips, flattening out her skirt. "It is exactly as he said. Even if I went back in order to help them, I would not have been able to do much of anything. If only I were a little stronger then perhaps—"

"—Rachel." Jesse said with sadness in his eyes as he reached out and took her hand.

The older man spoke up again. "Strength is not enough. You can't beat them with mere strength."

"He's right. It's not your fault. I bet those guys were professional soldiers. There's nothing we can really do against people like that."

"And, you know, just because they didn't make it to this evacuation facility doesn't mean that your parents are dead or anything. You know, they might be hiding out somewhere. You shouldn't give up so soon." Rachel listened to the older man's words and smiled softly, knowing that he was only trying to remain positive, but the encouraging words actually did serve to make her feel better about the situation.

"That could easily be true, my fathers are very intelligent."

"See! That's gotta be it!" He said with a smile. "Anyway, you'll just have to wait a little longer. What could you possibly do to help the situation right now? We don't even know what the hell is going on."

"You are correct." Rachel said. There was nothing she could do. Not yet.

O

Authors Note

I hope that you all enjoy this chapter. It is shorter, but I did not get many reviews and they encourage me to write long elaborate chapters.

Please do keep reading.

Thank you all!


	3. Lost

Until The End Of Time

Disclaimer: I own nothing. These characters belong to the creator of Glee and Star Ocean Til The End Of Time.

Pairing: Rachel/Quinn

Rating: M

Chapter Three

Lost

Rachel's eyes fluttered open and they were met with darkness, an unfamiliar ceiling soon came into focus and she was surrounded by an unfamiliar scent. "Where am I?" She asked, lifting herself onto her elbows and looking around the room. She could see Jesse asleep in the bed beside her and Brittany and her family asleep; Brittany was snuggled up to her cat in bed. "The attack on Hyda…" She whispered out, looking toward the clock. It read 3:52 AM.

"It's still so early." She said, lying back in bed, staring back up at the ceiling. Her thoughts wandered to her fathers who had still not arrived. "I hope they are safe."

Rachel had a craving for a glass of water and it caused tears to form behind her eyes. Her fathers would always give her a glass of water when she were upset, to the point that she no longer could tell if she were upset or if she were simply thirsty. This feeling brought back memories, nights when she would wake screaming from nightmares and her parents would come into her room and sing her back to sleep. Always allowing her to have the main solos, of course. They were amazing parents and the thought that she may never see them again terrified her.

She needed them in her life.

An alarm ringing out through the Evacuation Facility rooms interrupted her thoughts. Rachel sat up in bed hastily, brown eyes wide. "What is going on now?"

Jesse had woken up in the bed beside her and was rubbing the sleep out of his eyes as he climbed out of bed and joined Rachel who was already standing. "Rachel? What does that sound mean?"

"It sounds as though they are going to make an announcement."

The darkened room lit up, causing the small brunette to jump and let out a squeak. She had not been expecting the lights to come on and she was on edge. When she had started her day yesterday, she had never expected any of this to happen. They always prepared for the worse, but until yesterday that was all it was. Preparation.

There was a robotic voice over the intercom. "This is an update for all refuges. We now know the recent raid on the resort planet Hyda was a surprise attack by Vendeen."

"Vendeen?" Rachel asked aloud, looking to Jesse. "Aren't they that military power that is currently at war with Aldian?"

"Yeah, I think so, but why would they be attacking us?" He asked.

"I am unsure. They did turn down the Federation's offer of aid some time ago, but there were no open hostilities involved in the exchange."

The robotic voice continued to speak up loud and clear. "Remote Station Number Seven mounted an attempt to defend Hyda IV, but it was thwarted by a tactical Vendeeni Strike. Currently, the Pangalactic Administration is scrambling ships from surrounding regions, but Vendeeni forces still have control of this sector. We request that all civilians begin boarding rescue shuttles for immediate evacuation to Remote Station Number Six. Please do not panic. Refer to the nearest console or attendant for further instructions."

Rachel chewed on her cheeks nervously. She was not prepared to move on, but she knew that they had to. "Jesse, we have to get going. Are you ready?"

"Yeah, I'm ready."

"Just a little while longer and we will be safe; we just need to reach Remote Station Number Six."

Jesse nodded and Rachel flashed him a small smile as she headed toward one of the many computers in their room. Logging into her account, she typed in her identification code and once it accepted her identification she spoke up thoroughly into the computer. "Computer. Tell me the present location of Hiram and LeRoy Berry."

"The present location of the specified individuals is unknown."

"What do you mean, unknown?" She asked, her body shaking a little as tears threatened to fall.

"Both Hiram Berry and LeRoy Berry's positions were lost on Galactic Year 772-1214192."

Rachel's eyes widened and she gripped onto the computer tightly, knuckles turning white. She felt as if she were going to faint but she closed her eyes and tried to regain her senses. "What do you mean they are lost? What happened to them?"

The computer spoke up again. "The information system is currently experiencing technical difficulties. Confirmation is not possible at the present."

Brown eyes opened, darkened with anger and she slammed her small hands down onto the computer's keyboard. "Just tell me where they are!" Rachel screamed out at the computer who again denied her, telling her that it was experiencing technical difficulties. She slid down to her knees crying into her arms that rested on the keyboard of the computer. "Where are they? They cannot just be lost."

Jesse started to run a comforting hand through his best-friend's long brown hair. "Come on Rachel, we have to keep moving. They told me to protect you, and you have to be alive if you ever want to see them again."

Rachel forced herself to her feet and nodded sadly, wiping the tears from her eyes. "Let's get going."

O

Jesse and Rachel took the transporter to the Transport Ship Helre. Inside there was another male soldier with a robotic tone of voice. "Welcome to the Federation transport ship GFSS-12372 Helre. You must have been through a lot. We will soon be departing from Remote Station Number Six. The observation bay is located directly through the corridor leading out of this room. Please wait there until we reach our destination. Gravitic Warp will get us there shortly."

Rachel nodded her thanks to the soldier before heading out into the hallway and starting in the direction of the observation bay. Large brown eyes wandered the ship, exploring it, examining it.

As they entered the room they were told to go into by the soldier, both noticed a group of people gathered in front of what appeared to be a television monitor.

Jesse nudged her side. "It looks like they are all watching something over there."

"Yes, it does appear so. What is that?" Rachel wondered, eyebrows knit together, as she and Jesse started toward the monitor, joining the crowd of individuals in front of it.

Staring at the monitor they watched as the ships surrounded them, battling them. They watched as people were killed right before their eyes and it was horrifying. Rachel's full lips parted in astonishment and horror. "This is horrible…" She muttered out under her breath, feeling Jesse wrap a protective arm around her small shoulders.

A voice came from the intercoms above them. "We are about to enter Gravitic Warp to escape the battle zone. I repeat: We are about to enter Gravitic Warp to escape the battle zone. All evacuees prepare for warp turbulence."

The passengers all moved toward the seats in order to buckle themselves in.

O

Rachel snuggled into the warmth, feeling safe. "Mm…" She mumbled out as she gripped onto the shirt of the person who was holding her, suddenly she realized that she was being held and her eyes snapped open and she looked up. The small diva was met with Jesse's eyes and a smile.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up." Jesse told her in an apologetic tone.

"It is quite alright, how long did I sleep for? Where are we located now?" She felt like a child asking their parents 'are we there yet?'

"I don't know, they haven't really told us anything."

"Hm, that is strange." Rachel sat up now, furrowing her brow and pursing her lips as she looked around the room, looking for a soldier that she could ask. "We should probably find a crew member and ask them where we are located. They should have made an announcement by now."

"Yeah, we probably should." Jesse agreed standing up and straightening out his clothing before following Rachel closely.

Rachel looked around the room with conviction, she was a woman on a mission and few ever got in the way of Rachel Berry on a mission. Finally, she spotted an officer and she clenched her fists at her sides marching toward him. Right as she reached him though, another human interrupted her, attacking the soldier. He seemed even more frustrated with the situation.

"Hey, you, officer! What's the big deal, letting the Vendeeni forces get this far? Maybe it happened during nap time on Remote Station Number Seven?"

"I'm sorry, but this particular incident is currently under investigation. We have no further comments at this time." The officer spoke in a monotone voice, staring directly through the glass of his helmet into the other man's eyes.

"What are you trying to pull? Do you have any Idea who I am?" He shouted back at the robotic officer.

"No matter who you are, I cannot say anything more at this time. Please, return to the lounge."

Rachel found herself looking back and forth between the two bickering men; she lost her drive to speak with the officer. Now she was simply observing. "Don't you play games with me!" The man shouted out, throwing his hands in the air. "Talking to you is a waste of time! Get me the captain! I want to speak with the captain!"

"I am afraid I cannot do that. As long as the captain is the commanding officer aboard this ship, his orders are absolute. My orders from the captain state that I am not to allow civilians to enter any area but the lounge, for any reason."

"What! You idiot! I'll remember you! I'll use my influence to get you fired the second I arrive on Remote Station Number Six!"

The officer cocked his head to the side and smiled. "Be my guest."

With one last glare the man yelled out. "You'll regret this!" As he turned, his eyes met Rachel's large brown, and he pushed her out of the way as he walked by. "Get out of my sight!"

"Ow." Rachel muttered, holding onto her arm as she stared after the man angrily. Looking back to the solider she thought over what she had just witnessed. If he had turned down that influential man, there was no way that he was going to tell Rachel anything. She would just have to wait, or find someone else to speak with.

O

Authors Note

Thank you for all of the reviews. You have encouraged me to add another chapter.

I apologize for the last two chapters being so short, but the next will be longer I promise.

Tell me what you all think!

Thank you for reading.


	4. Follow Me

Until The End Of Time

Disclaimer: I own nothing. These characters belong to the creator of Glee and Star Ocean Til The End Of Time.

Pairing: Rachel/Quinn

Rating: M

Chapter Four

Follow Me

Inside of the lounge, Rachel watched as the Commander of the Transport Ship Helre, spoke to the Navigator. "Status report." He stated.

"Yes captain." The other said with a nod. "We were cruising at warp 15 on course 231, mark 330 when the Gravitic Warp Field collapsed and the computer detected an anomaly, forcing us to return to conventional space."

The commander looked to the giant computer screen in front of them all, speaking directly to it. "Computer, what caused the ship's Warp Field to collapse?"

"There is not enough data to determine the cause." A robotic voice stated.

"Alright, even if you cannot determine the cause, how about a theory?" He asked.

"Prior to the collapse, sensors detected a space-time disturbance. Our database does not contain any record of such a disturbance, but there is a 77% probability that it was the cause of the collapse."

The commander furrowed his brow in thought as he stared at the computer screen, trying to make sense of the situation. "Space-time disturbance?" He paused closing his eyes and lifting a hand to his aching forehead. "Come to think of it, Vendeeni military technology is based on space-time manipulation."

"That is not an established fact, but the Federation Institute of Technology has theorized this is the case." Stated the computer.

"So, it was likely a Vendeeni attack that stopped us, then."

"Screen, on!" The navigator shouted.

There was static on the large screen and then it was filled with a picture, it was a group of Vendeeni battleships floating through space. The commander slammed his fists down on the panel and shouted out. "Damn! Divert all power to the shields! Evasion course 291, mark 030!

"Course entered."

Rachel stared at the screen, she had never witnessed a Vendeeni battleship, and she could tell that they were a force to be reckoned with. Honestly, it was terrifying how advanced their technology was. "There is no way that our shields are going to be a match against the likes of that." She muttered out to Jesse, who turned to look at her.

"Rachel?"

The commander turned to face them all in order to make an announcement. "This is your Captain speaking. Our ship is currently under attack by a Vendeeni battleship. Our Gravitic Warp engine has already been disabled, which means escape is not an option. All power has been diverted to our shields in order to buy us some time, but I wanted you all to know: our chances are slim."

Rachel's lips parted and her eyes filled with worry at these words, not only for herself and Jesse, but also for her fathers. She kept wishing and hoping that she would wake up and this would all just be a dream.

"I had hoped to transport you all the way to Remote Station Number Six, but it seems that is now beyond my power. All evacuees are requested to proceed to the ship's escape pods. Please remain calm and follow the instructions of the attendant nearest you, as you board your pod. Good luck to you all." With that the commander flashed them all a smile.

His smile was wiped clean off his face as a laser beam shot out of the Vendeeni's ship hitting directly into their ship. Everyone screamed out.

"A direct hit?" Rachel asked, frantically looking around. Internally she was far from being calm, but the last thing that she wanted to do was scream and run around without direction like the others on the ship were doing. She had to remain calm in order to think logically and escape the ship.

"Shields down to 47% power." The navigator said.

One of the crew members approached the group of screaming people. "To the pods everyone, hurry! They're located one level up in the hanger bay. Please do not panic, I repeat, do not panic."

His words fell on the deaf ears of the passengers who all started to scream out their doom and rush toward the hangar, pushing each other, running over each other, and screaming at each other to move. Rachel watched as a middle-aged man knocked over a small girl and proceeded to leave her there to die. It was disgusting what people would do when put into a life or death situation, morality was lost on them.

She had been prepared to help the girl, but her mother had come and rescued her. "We have to get out of here Jesse."

Jesse nodded his head in response allowing Rachel to lead the way to the hangar, following her closely.

O

"Good. There are still enough pods for us." Rachel stated as she ran into the pod room, she had been worried that the other people would take all of the pods before they even arrived at the room. Turning to look at Jesse she nodded her head in the direction of one of the pods. "Hurry up and get inside of that one Jesse, we are running out of time."

He looked at the pod hesitantly before approaching it. "I've never been in one of these things, how does it work?"

"Do not worry Jesse, it is fairly simple. All that you have to do is get inside and launch yourself out into space by pressing the red button. Once in space, a Federation ship will recover our pods in no time." She lifted her chin confidently and flashed him a full-lipped smile. "Now come on, get inside. I will see you at Remote Station Number Six."

"Alright, you will follow me right?"

"Yes, I will be right behind you for the entirety of the trip, now get inside Jesse. We have no time to waste."

Jesse walked over to her, wrapping his arms around her in a tight embrace. She smiled against his chest enjoying the comfort that she found in his warmth, before pulling back and encouraging him to once again get inside. "I will see you soon Jesse, have a safe trip."

"You too." He said leaning down and pressing his lips to the top of her head before backing up and turning to get inside of the escape pod.

Rachel watched as her best friend launched himself into space and she smiled sadly, internally pleading that they would meet again, that she would not lose him as well as her fathers. She could not handle that. Mustering up all of the confidence she could, she climbed into her own escape pod, sitting down in the driver seat. Looking down at the panel of buttons, she activated the control system.

The computer inside of the pod spoke up. "Activation complete, ejection in ten seconds."

Pressing down on the red button inside of the pod, she was launched directly into space. Turning to look back at the ship she watched as it exploded, knowing that people had died. It broke her heart. The explosion managed to push her escape pod off course and she quickly lost sight of Jesse's pod and the direction to the station. Now she was floating around in space, uncertain where she was located.

"This is not good, this is not good." She muttered to herself as she looked to the map, trying to find the station on it, to no avail. "Computer, we need to find Station Six."

The computer declined her request, informing her that they would not make it that distance.

"In that case, we need to find a place to land." Rachel told the computer.

"Searching for life-supporting planets." The robotic voice informed her, after a few minutes of beeping noises a red dot appeared on the map in front of her. "Planet found."

"What planet?" She asked the computer.

"Vanguard III, located approximately 0.5 light years from present location. Axial tilt of 35 degrees results in extreme seasonal weather. Existence of humanoid life forms confirmed. The Federation has classified Vanguard III as an Underdeveloped Planet. Civilization Level: approximately equivalent to 16th-century Earth. Would you like to review the Underdeveloped Planet Preservation Pact?"

Rachel was one who always liked to be prepared and seeing that she had never been to an Underdeveloped Planet, she felt it was necessary. "Most certainly."

Again the robotic voice sounded through the pod. "The Underdeveloped Planet Preservation Pact was established in order to protect planets with developing civilizations. Contact with civilizations that have not reached a certain level of development is strictly prohibited by Federation law. This is due to the fact that contact with advanced civilizations has a high probability of greatly influencing the course of history on a less developed planet. All individuals and organizations belonging to the Pangalactic Federation are required to adhere to the tenets of this pact, unless faced with clear danger to life and limb. This pact is one of the most important components of Pangalactic Federation law. Violators will be tried by the Pangalactic Council."

For a moment she mulled over the words, pondering if this counted as a life or death situation, and it did. So, for her that was an important enough reason to break the law. She would just need to make sure to be extra careful about showing them her advanced technology and changing their history too much. "How long until we arrive, computer?"

"At our present speed of warp 6, arrival is estimated in 144 hours."

"Are there any foreseeable problems in getting to Vanguard III? How are our energy reserves?" She asked.

"No foreseeable problems. An adequate supply of energy and food is on board."

Rachel let out a soft sigh of relief at this; she had been worried that she would not survive the trip. She knew that the planet she was about to arrive on may not accept her; they could kill her on the spot, seeing as she was a creature who fell from the sky. But, she would never even get the chance to attempt to survive, if she died floating around in the vast emptiness of space. "Alright, I suppose that I will get some rest. Notify me if anything of importance occurs."

"Affirmative."

O

"Entering Vanguard III's gravitational field. Prepare for entry turbulence." The computer stated loudly, interrupting Rachel's sleep. She had been flying through space for days and she found that there were very few things to entertain her. The majority of her time was spent preparing for landing, planning out how she was going to get off the planet, and still getting in her singing lessons daily, out of fear that she would hinder her talents. Other than that, she slept.

Hastily she sat up in her chair, brown eyes large and wide as she stared at the screen. Her heart was pounding rapidly in her chest. She was terrified. Rachel had never traveled to another planet on her own, and whilst she was confident in her fighting abilities, especially with her advanced technology, she was still scared.

The escape pod made its way through the atmosphere of the planet and Rachel held on tightly, attempting to steady her body as the pod shook. Then finally it landed in the middle of a forest.

She pressed a few buttons, opening the glass window of the pod in order to climb out of the machine. Walking into the forest she looked around, wondering where she was located and if it was a safe area of the planet. There could be wild creatures lurking around the forested area for all that she knew. Pulling her bottom lip between her teeth she looked down at the transmitter around her wrist, no one had attempted to contact her. "Hm, I guess since they have yet to contact me, it may be a few days before they come to rescue me."

Rachel took a few steps into the area and looked up at the beautiful blue sky. The fresh air was nearly suffocating after living in space all of her life, it was a bit overwhelming. "So, this is Vanguard III…"

Pressing a button on the machine around her wrist she scanned the area, knowing that she needed to keep an eye out for any form of danger. There was a beeping noise and a red dot appeared on her scanner. "Hm, my scanner appears to be picking up something moving fairly quickly, it may be an animal…" She whispered out to herself, hoping that it was not a dangerous creature.

"I should probably make a weapon to protect myself, who knows what could be wandering around out here." With that, she turned back to the escape pod and started to use the computer attached to the outside of the pod. "Computer, I need a weapon that would be equivalent to the weaponry on this planet."

The computer responded. "A sword would be an efficient match for this planet's level of development."

"Commence." She told it, knowing that she would be able to use a sword easily due to her practice in the battle simulator. Although, truthfully, she hoped that she would not need to use the sword at all, the last thing that she wanted was to get into a fight on another planet.

After a few strange robotic noises, a sword flashed into space and fell into her hand. She wielded it tightly, swinging it around a few times to be certain it was the correct weight. "That seems about right." She muttered out, resting the sword in the soil.

Glancing up at the sky she noticed that the sun was slowly moving across the sky. Knowing that the sun would be setting soon she figured that she should find a safer place to stay by night fall. Rachel knew little about the planet, if there were safe towns, safe people, but she did know that sleeping in the middle of a forest was never the safest option. Looking down at her scanner she searched for a city.

"There is something there, perhaps if I expand the range just a little bit." She whispered out before doing so. "It seems to be picking up humanoids. Based on this reading, I would guess it is a city." Brown eyes glanced through long lashes at the sky once more. "If I start out now, I might be able to make it by night fall."

Rachel decided to hide the scanner away in her bag, before heading out. She did not wish to further break the law. It would be best to keep a low profile.

O

Authors Note

This chapter is a little bit longer, but still not into the main storyline. She will be meeting Quinn soon, and things will be answered, I promise.

Please, bear with me. Reviews do encourage me to write longer chapters and update faster! So please tell me what you all think.

Thank you all for reading.


	5. This Planet Is Your Prisoner

Until The End Of Time

Disclaimer: I own nothing. These characters belong to the creator of Glee and Star Ocean Til The End Of Time.

Pairing: Rachel/Quinn

Rating: M

Chapter Five

This Planet is Your Prisoner

_Rachel was trapped in the darkness, the darkness of her own mind. She could not force her eyes to open so that she could escape the nightmare that she was trapped in. She was watching from a distance as Jesse and her parents were surrounded by flames, melting their skin. Enemies had them boxed in, and they could not go in any direction. Rachel was useless, she could not seem to get her legs to move, all that she could do was stare at the scene with tears in her eyes._

"_Help me, Rachel!" Jesse shouted out to her, he could see her and it broke her heart knowing that she could not do anything to help him, to help her fathers._

"_I—I can't move!" She screamed across the flames._

"_Rachel, please—" His speech was cut off as one of the enemies fired their gun, shooting him directly in the heart. Rachel watched as Jesse clutched his chest tightly through his shirt and blood spilled out over his hand, before his body fell to the ground. _

_Then as she glanced back up she watched as her fathers followed, both of their eyes fixated on her as blood rolled down their chins and from their chests. They both fell to their knees and then they were dead. She could not move, no matter how hard she tried. Falling to the ground her body shook as she cried out in agony. "Aaaahh!"_

Suddenly Rachel woke up, sitting straight up in bed, still screaming out at the top of her lungs.

After a moment of frantically moving around and screaming out, she realized that she was in an unfamiliar bed. Now she started to worry for a completely different reason. "Where am I?" She wondered aloud before looking around the room from the bed.

Hearing a noise to her left, she quickly looked over toward the sound spotting a little girl carrying a tray with a glass and a pitcher of water. She smiled in Rachel's direction. "I'll leave some water here, okay?" She set the water on the table beside the bed and backed away from the stranger.

"Rori!" The girl screamed out.

Rachel watched as a young boy walked into the room, he had large blue eyes, long ears like the little girl, and a small smile on his lips. "Are you alright? You were groaning out in your sleep." He spoke politely in an accented voice, and honestly Rachel was a bit surprised by his hospitality.

She smiled in return and nodded her head. "Yes, I think that I am fine, thank you very much." Pausing she knit her brows together in confusion. "How did I get here, if I may ask?"

"My sister, Sugar, found you in the forest not too far from here. You were unconscious and she insisted upon us bringing you back and helping you to recover." He said with a look to the young girl who once again approached the bed.

"In that case, thank you for rescuing me, Sugar."

She smiled and laughed a little, shrugging her shoulders and twirling her pigtails with her fingers, but she did not say anything.

Rachel laughed a little at the response before lifting the covers off of her body and standing to her feet, still not completely certain how she had gotten there. Had the heat been too much for her to handle? Had she been attacked? She couldn't recall. "I suppose that I should introduce myself." They nodded their heads. "My name is Rachel Barbra Berry; I am pleased to make your acquaintance."

"I'm Rori, her name is Sugar. Rachel, you said Rachel, right? Your clothes and your ears, are you one of Norton's men?" He asked.

"Norton? Is that a person's name?"

"Yes." Rori insisted.

Rachel tried to understand the situation, but she did not know what was going on. She still did not even know where she was, how far was she from her ship? Had they found her ship? "I apologize. Honestly, I do not really fully understand the situation here."

He looked shocked. "You don't know who Norton is?"

"No, actually, I have never heard of him. Who is he?" She wondered curiously.

Rori raised his hands shaking them. "If you do not know who he is, then please, never mind. I am sorry for the question." With that he moved to push Rachel back toward the bed. "Where do you think you are going? You still need to recover your strength! Feel free to rest here for a while. We can't really do much, but we do have some food."

Rachel flashed him a smile. "I am fine." He pushed her again. "No, really I am fine."

Sugar interrupted their dispute. "No! You should stay in bed!"

"Please, rest. Don't worry; it is our way to help each other in times of trouble." Rori added with a grin.

Biting down on her cheeks she looked from one of them to the other. She wanted to decline again, she needed to return to her ship and figure out what time it was and if anyone had contacted her, but she felt that it would be rude to decline their hospitality. After a few moments she decided to agree to their wishes and then perhaps she could sneak out of the house. "Sorry, I thank you for your hospitality." Rachel moved to the bed and sat down.

"It is no problem. Sugar, let's let her get some rest."

Sugar nodded, and watched as Rori walked out of the room. Rachel glanced toward the small girl and noted. "He appears to be so young, but he seems so mature for his apparent age."

The girl with pigtails and long ears moved toward the bed, jumping onto it and staring directly at her, inspecting her. Rachel felt uncomfortable and she cast her large brown eyes toward her hands, fiddling her fingers.

"Rachel, tell me, where are you from?" She cocked her head to the other side. "Why are your ears so round?" She poked one of them.

Rachel shook her head and laughed at the other girl's antics.

O

Rachel woke up a few hours later, fully prepared to sneak out of the house. Sitting up, she swung her feet over the side of the bed looking down at her black shoes and knee high argyle socks momentarily, before standing to her feet and looking around the room. She had an agenda; she needed to figure out more about the planet and how to get off of it. "Wait…" The small diva muttered out looking around. "Where is my sword?"

Quickly, Rachel came to the assumption that Rori must have taken it, for whatever reason. "It is not like I need it at the moment, anyway." She whispered out before sneaking toward the back door of the house.

"Where are you going Rachel?" A female voice asked from behind her.

Turning quickly her eyes came into contact with Sugar, glancing down; she realized that the other girl was holding a small box in her hands. "What do you have there?" She distracted from the original question.

"It is my treasure box! Daddy gave it to me on my birthday!" Sugar announced proudly.

Rori walked into the room with a somber look on his face as he stared Rachel directly in the eyes. "That music box was passed down through our mother's family. It is the only thing we have left from our parents. " Pausing he walked closer to the two women. "But, alas, it is broken now, and does not make a sound."

Rachel looked to the box, running her tongue over her full bottom lip as she thought it over. She was certain she had the technology to fix the machine, even if she had never heard of a music box; it could not be that difficult. "I see, may I have a look at this music box, per chance?"

"Yeah, sure, here!" Sugar stated excitedly handing the box over to the other woman.

Rachel examined the music box closely, turning it around in every direction. She realized that it was a simple machine, and the gearbox was broken. She knew that she could fix the machine if she could get back to her pod, it would be easy for her to synthesize the parts necessary. "I believe that I could fix this for you, if you wish. It could be my way of paying you back for rescuing me." She smiled.

"Really? You can fix it, Rachel?" The young girl asked.

Rori looked hesitant with the stranger's proclamation. "Can you really do that? It is an expensive music box. They told us it would cost a great deal to fix it."

It was true, with this planet's level of civilization; the parts for the music box more than likely would not come cheap. But, she could synthesize them for free; still, she did not want them to know that. "Well, if I can get my hands on the correct parts, then yes, and I think that I know where to get them. It is a little ways away, but I will go get them later tonight."

"But, we cannot ask you to do something like that for us!" He quickly declined her offer.

"You saved my life. It is the least that I can do in order to repay you." Rachel insisted.

"Still—"

"—and I am sure that Sugar wants it fixed, correct?" She interrupted, looking to the girl who nodded excitedly with a wide smile on her face.

Rori looked between his sister and the stranger, conflicted. "Hm, very well. Thank you misses."

"In return, do you think that I could retrieve my sword from you? I will not be able to go through the forest without it."

He looked at her suspiciously, crossing his arms over his chest. "You swear you are not with Norton and his gang?"

Rachel looked at him with sincere eyes. "That I am not. Do you not believe me?"

"No, I trust you."

"Thank you." She said with a smile.

"But, you must be wary. If you are not one of Norton's gang, you will be in even more danger outside of the village." Rori said, moving to get the sword from the closet in the room. Lifting it with both of his hands and handing it to Rachel who took it easily with one of her hands.

"I will be careful, thank you for your concern."

O

Rachel was shocked by what she found upon returning to her escape pod. "What happened?" She asked frantically, looking around at the pod. "The pod's parts and equipment have been stripped?" Kneeling down, she crawled under the machine in order to check if there were any essential parts remaining, but everything had been taken.

Leaning her head back in the dirt she stared up at the bottom of the pod, confused. "There is no way that the inhabitants of this planet could possibly know what this machine is. It would make more sense if they had simply broken it out of fear."

She let out a loud frustrated sigh and rolled out from beneath the pod, standing to her feet and dusting off her skirt and argyle sweater. "Well, this was a pointless trip; I better get back to the village."

O

"Rachel!" Sugar shouted out bouncing toward Rachel as she entered the house.

"Hello there." She laughed a little at the other woman's excitement.

Rori joined them shortly after, letting out a sigh as he saw the stranger. "What a relief, you are well! Norton's gang was lurking around the forest in the direction you left in. It had us both very worried."

This caught Rachel's attention and her head snapped in his direction, catching his eyes in an intense stare. She wondered who this Norton was and if he had been the one who stripped her pod for parts. "Rori, could you tell me more about Norton and his gang? Who are they exactly?"

There was a brief silence.

Finally, he spoke. "I do not know everything myself. He, Norton, appeared suddenly in our village about half a year past. He ordered the village to supply him with food. Of course, we refused at first. The village needs its supplies to survive the harsh winter. Norton was in fact ordering the village to die. But, when people refused him, he called upon this mysterious light, and those it touched disappeared, one after the other!"

Rori paused, for a moment showing vulnerability. "Our father resisted, until the very end. Of course, we told our lord, but he said the idea of people disappearing into thin air was nonsense, and didn't want to hear about it. Now some of the villagers have even joined Norton's gang!"

Rachel sifted through his words trying to make sense of them. This Norton did not sound as if he were from this planet at all. "A mysterious light that makes people disappear…?" She muttered out, more to herself than the others in the room. Casting her eyes back to Rori she asked him, "Rori, when you met me, you asked me about my clothing and my ears, correct?"

"Ah, yes. Norton wore clothes made out of a strange material that was neither linen nor cotton, just like the clothes you wear. And his ears were shaped like yours. That is why I did not trust you at first." He looked away ashamed. "I apologize."

"Do not worry about it." Rachel assured him that she was not upset with his lack of trust in her, upon meeting her; honestly after hearing this she could not blame him. Closing her eyes she took a moment to think it over. Could this Norton be from another planet? It would explain his clothing and ears, and the mysterious light. It would also explain why he would steal pod parts that nobody on the planet should recognize.

Rori took a few steps toward her, looking her over. "Is something the matter?"

Large brown eyes fluttered open and she stared into his eyes. "Oh no, it is nothing, I was just thinking." She said with a reassuring grin. Although, inside she was far from alright. She knew that thinking would not change anything, that this man could be dangerous, and she knew that she was the only one who could confront him. She had to go and meet him. Turning her gaze to Sugar she apologized. "I am truly sorry, but it is going to take me a little longer to fix your music box. Is that alright?"

"That's fine!" Sugar said excitedly, oblivious to anything that was going on. "Rori, I'm hungry! Let's eat." She said pulling on her brother's arm.

"Ah yes, very well, let us eat." He said.

O

"Sugar?" Rachel asked, and the other girl turned to look directly at her. "Where is Rori?"

Sugar cocked her head to the side, her lips flat as she visually thought about it. "I don't know, when I woke up, he was already gone." Pausing she walked closer to the small brunette, worry dancing in her eyes. "I hope he hasn't disappeared, too. Just like Mama and Papa."

"Rori would never leave you like that." Rachel stated confidently. "It will be alright; I will go and find him for you."

She could feel her heart pounding loudly in her chest as she went to the closet in order to retrieve her sword. Even though she hardly knew the young boy, she felt the need to protect him. He had saved her life and had made her stay on the planet far more bearable. In a way he reminded her of Jesse, and that made everything easier for her. She missed her best friend, she missed her fathers.

O

Rachel proceeded through the forest, quickly realizing that she should not have gone alone. She had no idea where she was going. "Hm…" She hummed out, looking around, and then she spotted a group of large stones. Approaching the stones she noticed that they were the ruins of a temple, in front of the temple stood three men dressed in clothing that she recognized from the future and wielding futuristic weaponry.

"These must be Norton's gang." She stated, before making her way toward the group.

One of them heard her heading in their direction and quickly turned to look her over. "Who are you, kid? What do you want? This here is Lord Norton's turf, so beat it, or else!"

Rachel clutched her sword, preparing for battle if it came to that, but that was the last thing that she wanted. "I do not wish to fight you guys." She spoke punctually. "I just wanted to know if you have seen a young boy wandering around here?"

Another of Norton's gang walked toward her, eyeballing her sword. "A young boy, you say?" He paused, a maniacal grin spreading from one ear to the other. "Oh, you mean Rori? Yeah, he came around here, blabbering about getting something back, and wanting to see Lord Norton."

"What did you do to him?" She asked protectively, forcing her chin up and holding her confident stance.

"Being the kind-hearted fellas we are, we gave the stupid kid what he wanted. I bet Lord Norton's reeducating the undisciplined little brat right now."

"What do you mean?"

"It's the kid's own fault. Nothing good can come from messing with Lord Norton. Don't worry; he'll learn it's better to join us than to fight us! It's a shame the apple don't fall far from the tree. Idiocy must run in the family." He laughed.

Rachel raised a finger pointing it at the man. "You rotten little—" She was cut short as she felt a sharp dagger pressed against her throat, digging into the skin. It hurt, but she did not show her weakness, waiting for a chance to attack.

"Whoa there, didn't I just say you can't pass through here? Want to see that brat, you got to beat us, first!"

"You are horrible people; he is just a little boy. What gives you the right to—" The dagger dug deeper into her flesh and she winced slightly.

"—looks like we got another village idiot in need of some education!"

O

After defeating the gang members easily, she headed inside the ruins. Looking from room to room, searching for Norton and Rori. She was halted in her search as she walked into one of the rooms finding the stripped parts of her escape pod.

This was confirmation for Rachel, she now knew without a shadow of a doubt that this Norton was an offworlder as well. She wondered why he was on the planet and breaking the laws, they were not to share their technology with underdeveloped planets.

Rachel prioritized, knowing that she needed to find Rori and make sure he was safe before she worried about the stolen parts. Continuing through the ruins she came to a room that was controlled by electronic equipment, computers lined the walls, and she could see a locked cell door. Moving toward the control panel she easily unlocked the door and walked toward it as it was opening, looking inside she spotted Rori curled up on the cement floor.

"Rori, are you alright?" Rachel asked, and he looked up at her quickly.

"Rachel, why are you here?" He questioned, standing to his feet.

"That is kind of what I was hoping to ask you, you should never have come here and left your sister alone at home like that."

Rori looked down at his feet. "I know, but the music box parts, I wanted to get them back." Rachel's eyes widened in astonishment at his words, how did he even know that they were stolen? Had he followed her? "I-I could not ask you to do this for us."

"But that is insane; you could have gotten badly injured coming here all by yourself."

"Exactly! It is dangerous here! You must leave, quickly, he will get you!"

"Rori? Hang in there, Rori." She ran to his aid as the young boy fell to the ground, unconscious. She could tell that he had been injured. Rachel looked around the cell, and then back to Rori. "Hold on, Rori, I will get you out of here."

Using all of her strength she lifted the boy onto her shoulder and carried him out of the cell and back through the hallways of the ruins. Just as she could see the end of the hallway and she felt that freedom was in her grasp, Rachel was stopped by a loud commanding voice. "Freeze!"

She paused mid-step and gently lowered Rori's body to the ground, there was a gunshot that just barely missed her and she froze, placing her hands on the back of her head.

"No funny moves if you want to stay alive. Play nice and I will let you live a little longer." The mysterious voice informed.

Rachel looked to where the shot had hit and realized it had made a clean cut. Without moving, she said. "That was a phase gun. So you must be the infamous Norton."

"Yeah, that's me. I am Norton the Great!"

Biting down on her bottom lip she continued to stand still. "Why are you here? You are not from this planet, are you?"

Norton laughed. "I'm from Rezerb, little girl. We're not part of the Federation."

"Rezerb?" Rachel wondered aloud. "I have heard of that world. That is the planet that is full of joy-seekers that keeps rejecting Federation Membership. So, that still did not answer my question, what are you doing here on this underdeveloped planet?"

"Not much to tell. I was involved in this unfortunate accident. Guess it was a bit much, even for Rezerb. So I was sentenced to spend the rest of my days in exile on a deserted planet. But, the escort ship they were transporting me on had engine trouble and ended up crash landing here. All I had to do was mess with their engine codes, those stupid pilots ended up frying their engines. All I was trying to do was create a distraction so I could make my escape. But, we ended up crashing, and this planet became my prison."

"This planet became your prisoner." Rachel stated, her voice shaking with anger.

Suddenly, a gunshot was fired at the wall near the small brunette and she jumped, letting out a squeak. "I am a Lord here and you will treat me as such, underling."

"What happened to the other individuals on the escort ship with you?"

"Oh, those guys?" Norton laughed. "They're dead, the poor fools. They were trying to send out a distress signal, and so I had to take care of them. The crash was unfortunate, but no use crying over spilt milk, I've been devoting myself to making this planet my kingdom. You get my drift?"

"So that is why you have taken over that village?"

"Yeah, something like that. You're a smart kid. That's why I have been raiding the village and that is why you gotta die. Sorry! You'll be happy to know I'm gonna make the most of those parts I stripped from your escape pod."

Norton readied his gun.

Rachel could feel her head pounding painfully and she dug her small fingers into dark hair, trying to alleviate the overwhelming pain. Suddenly, blue light was emitted from her head and her eyes filled with blackness. "It is guys like you—" She spoke, turning to face him.

The Lord stared at her, terrified, as she turned to look at him with empty eyes. "What are you doing?"

A man walked up to them, he had no fear in his squinty brown eyes as he watched the scene unfold. "Ah, there you are. I thought I lost you when your distress signal went out. Might never have found you if it wasn't for those explosions."

Norton looked at the random man who had approached them. "What do you want? You're not one of them Federation guys, are you?"

"Who, me?" He flashed him a dorky half smile. "A Federation soldier? That's a good one."

"Well then, who are you?" Norton asked, looking back at Rachel whose body was shaking, eyes still filled with blackness.

"Finn Hudson. A Klausian and member of Quark."

"A K-Klausian?" He stuttered out surprised.

"Yeah, sorry dude, no time to explain. I'm kinda in a hurry. Just lemme have Rachel, that Earthling girl over there and I'll be on my way. I don't plan on butting into whatever ya got going on over here."

Rachel turned her attention to him, knitting her eyebrows together. She had never seen the tall young man before in her life, what could he want with her? "How do you know my name?"

He shrugged his broad shoulders. "Let's not sweat the details. All you need to know is, you're my girl." With that, Finn walked over to Rachel and reached out holding onto her arm. She looked into his brown eyes but found no hostility behind them.

"Hold it right there or I will shoot." Norton said, aiming his gun in Finn's direction.

"You talking to me?"

"You think you can fool me? There is no way a Klausian would come here! You're probably some sort of spy or something."

Finn let out a sigh; he was in a hurry and was getting frustrated with the man attempting to stop him from his mission. "Look, since I'm such a nice guy, I'm gonna fill you in on a little secret. That gun you have there has no effect on us Klausians."

"Shut the fuck up, you liar!" The Lord fired his gun at Finn, but the shots missed him completely. Moving quickly, which was shocking considering how big he was, he slammed his fist directly in Norton's face, causing his head to fly back and blood to spill out from his nose.

O

After Finn and Rachel defeated Norton, the tall man smirked confidently. "Well, so much for that guy. But I did try to warn him."

Rachel focused her eyes on Finn, watching him as he dusted off his clothing and laughed at the fallen man. It was disrespectful, but his strength was most definitely admirable. She had heard of the physical abilities of the Klausians, and this man had proven as much. She recalled that he also said he was a member of Quark, which was an anti-Federation group.

"Looks like I overdid it. Shoulda held back a little bit." Pausing, Finn pulled out a communicator, tossing it to the small woman who caught it and looked down at it.

"Is this a communicator?"

"Yeah, can't live without one. I can't figure out why you wouldn't have one with you."

Feeling embarrassed, she looked down at her feet. A blush spreading across her naturally tan cheeks, this man had saved her life. "It is a long story I assure you. Thank you so very much for getting me out of that mess, you saved my life."

"First off, don't use such big of words; second, you shouldn't be thankin' me. Ya see, I've come to abduct you." He said with a smile.

Rachel's head snapped upward and her eyes widened in surprise as she took a few steps backward. "What do you mean; you have come to abduct me?"

"Now, don't get all worked up. I'm not going to hurt you or nothing. It's just my boss wants to meet you. That's why I came all the way out here to find you."

She knit her eyebrows together. "Your boss, you mean Quark's boss?"

Finn nodded his head. "That's right. Our leader wants to see you. But you've sure made it a tough job for me. First, I went to Hyda and ran into that mess, thanks to you. Then I get here and find you poking your nose into matters better left alone."

She bit down on her bottom lip and she forced back the tears threatening to fill her eyes as she thought about what happened on Hyda. For a moment she had forgotten. "You make it sound as if it were my fault that Hyda got attacked."

"Dude, I was just kidding around, don't sweat it." He laughed, ignoring her tears and walking closer to her. "At any rate, I got you now. And I did rescue you, so no complaining. And besides, you wanna see your dads, don't you?"

Rachel quickly looked up catching his eyes and nodding adamantly.

"Well, they've been captured by the Vendeeni."

Her full bottom lip quavered and tears rolled down her cheeks as she heard this, she was partially relieved because that meant that they were still alive, but still terrified for their safety. "The Vendeeni captured my fathers? But why would they do such a thing?"

He lifted his hands, signaling he did not know. "Hey, don't ask me. All I know is your dads were abducted from the Evacuation Facility on Hyda."

"What about Jesse?" Rachel whispered out.

"I don't know about your friend. I've had my hands full just trying to track down your escape pod."

Looking up at him, her dark eyes held accusation and anger. "How do you know all of this information? What else do you know?"

"Not much else, sorry." Pausing he started to lead her out of the hallway. "Oh yeah, I do know what your dads were researching."

She was baffled, that information was not classified. "You mean symbological genetics? My fathers are both authorities in that field, so it is not all too shocking that you have heard of them."

Finn laughed at her ignorance. "Right." He stretched the word. "Symbological genetics. And just about seventeen years ago—Ah! Never mind. That doesn't matter right now. C'mon you gotta go with me! You don't got any other way off this planet, do ya? Look, I'm sure things will clear up if you just come with me, and you'll get to see your dads again."

"But according to you, my fathers have been captured by the Vendeeni, so how could I possibly be allotted a chance to see them again?"

"It's simple! Quark'll go rescue them."

"Why would an anti-Federation group want to help my fathers?"

"Well, tell ya what, it's kinda complicated. Let's not get into that right now, you coming or not?" Finn asked, watching her expectantly with those squinty brown eyes and that half smile.

Rachel thought it over for a moment, weighing the possibilities. "Alright, I will go with you. But is there any chance that we could stop by that village on the way? I was hoping to make sure that Rori was returned safely."

"Yeah, sure whatever."

O

Authors Note

I added another chapter quickly because I got quite a few reviews, this one is even longer, but I still did not manage to get to Quinn's introduction. I hope that you all will not become impatient with me.

Thank you for the reviews they encourage me to update quickly, if you leave some more reviews I may have the next chapter up tomorrow!

Thank you all for reading.


	6. They Fell From the Sky

Until The End Of Time

Disclaimer: I own nothing. These characters belong to the creator of Glee and Star Ocean Til The End Of Time.

Pairing: Rachel/Quinn

Rating: M

Chapter Six

They Fell From the Sky

"Finish up quick and get back here. I'll be waiting for you." Finn said at the entrance of the village.

Rachel turned to look at him and smiled, nodding her head as she carried the young man into the village on her shoulder, toward his home. Upon entering the village her eyes widened at the sight, there was a group of people gathered at the center all shouting out Rori's name, searching for him.

As the small brunette approached the group they all turned to look at her, she gently set the young man on the ground.

"Rori!" Sugar shouted out running to her brother's aid, she knelt down beside him as tears filled her eyes. "I don't care about my music box! I just care about my brother… Is he okay?"

Rachel flashed the young girl a sympathetic smile. "Yes, he is going to be alright, he is just unconscious. He would never leave you alone, Sugar."

"Really?" She asked through sobs.

Laughing a little she knelt down beside the other girl, placing a hand on her back. "Yes, really."

O

Rachel worked diligently on fixing the music box, occasionally glancing up at the two siblings. Rori was still unconscious and lying in his bed with Sugar at his side reading to him one of his favorite storybooks. Brown eyes glanced back down at the music box as she put the last piece in place causing the music box to spring to life. She smiled proudly at her accomplishment before closing the box and setting it on the desk in front of her.

Again she looked over at the two. Rachel knew that it was time to go, she wished that she could say goodbye but knew that she could not waste any more time, so instead she snuck out the back door of the house. She had not expected to become close to anyone when she landed on the planet, and she had, she could only hope that their lives would be better off now that Norton was gone.

Rachel returned to the entrance of the village meeting up with Finn.

"You ready?" He asked her.

She looked back at the village with sadness written on her face before nodding. "Yes, I am ready."

"Okay, good. Now, you remember that cliff near your escape pod? Our way out lies beyond there, so let's get going."

O

Reaching the cliff, they both halted, standing on the edge and staring down at the water below. Rachel looked up to Finn with expectant eyes, not knowing where they should go from there. He lifted up his wrist, speaking into his communicator. "Hey, it's me. We're at the location. Transport us up as soon as you can."

There was a voice on the other side of the communicator that Rachel could not quite make out; the only thing she could tell for sure was that it was a female voice.

Finn listened to the voice before responding. "Hmm? Oh, no problem. I got her. I said its okay, I haven't done anything. Yeah, I know. Now hurry up and get us outta here."

The transmission broke contact.

Rachel stood awkwardly, her hands held tightly behind her back as she shuffled her feet. She did not know if she should say anything. This was most definitely the strangest abduction in the history of abductions, she could not tell if he was saving her or taking her to her doom.

Finn wrapped a heavy arm around her small shoulders smiling. "My ship'll be here soon. Once we're ready, it's good riddance to this hunk 'o rock. My ship's not so big, but it's packing a Gravitic Warp engine so it's pretty fast and stuff."

"That is good to know." Rachel whispered out, staring down at the crashing waves. She missed the oceans and large bodies of water whilst in space.

A moment of silence passed by and Rachel's curiosity got the best of her. "Hey, Finn."

"Yeah?" He wondered, looking down at her.

"There is something that I have been meaning to inquire you about." When his face covered in confusion, she quickly realized the error of her ways; she had been using "big" words again. "I mean, I have been meaning to ask you about."

"Oh, what's that?"

"Why does Quark's leader wish to meet with me? I am simply a college student studying musical theatre from the planet Earth."

Finn smiled a little and looked away. "Oh um… No comment?" He could feel Rachel's eyes staring into him and he knew that she was not going to drop the subject that easily. She seemed to be almost annoyingly persistent he was realizing. "That's not doin' it for ya, is it?"

"No, it is not."

He let out a sigh. "Okay, well let's see. I guess the biggest reason would be that our leader wants to talk to you."

Rachel stared at him as if he had grown another limb, her brows knit together and a look of disbelief and frustration formed on her face. He could not think that an answer like that was going to suffice, could he? "Nice try, but that is merely avoiding the question altogether. Why is it that your leader wishes to meet with me?"

"How should I know? I just do what I'm told. All I know is that there is something our leader wants to talk to you about."

"And that something is?" She pried deeper.

Pulling his arm away from her he threw it up in the air. "Well, you'll just have to come with me and find out for yourself. Sorry, but I don't know much more than what I already told ya."

Both were distracted from their current conversation as a small spaceship hovered over their heads, Rachel looked up at the machine before letting out a surprised squeak as Finn grabbed ahold of her and they were teleported up into the ship.

Rachel felt light headed as she arrived on the ship, but she soon grew used to the uneasiness. She watched as a young woman walked toward them, she had fairly dark skin, black eyes, and her dark hair was pulled back into a ponytail. She was wearing a revealing sports bra-type shirt and a skirt that showed off most of her toned body. "Hey, welcome back." She said, addressing Finn, obviously.

"Sorry to keep ya waitin' S." He said, which earned a roll of the other woman's eyes as they walked into the main control of the ship. Finn turned to look down at Rachel as he introduced the stranger. "This is my navigator and partner in crime. I leave the day-to-day operation of the ship to her. Santana, this is our target."

Rachel sent a glare in his direction; she did not like being referred to as a target.

"Yeah, I could tell by the description." Santana said looking the shorter brunette over. "Her clothes are as ugly as they said they would be." She laughed as an offended look covered Rachel's face. "Anyway, despite the clothes, nice to meet ya, Rachel. I'm Santana Lopez."

"Although I truly believe that you are wrong about my attire, I am pleased to meet you as well, Santana."

"You didn't tell me the poor girl was blind Finn."

"Blind…?" Rachel whispered out, confused. Then her eyes widened and she clenched her fists at her side storming after Santana and Finn who had started to walk toward the computers. "I must insist that you not insinuate that I am blind and that is the reasoning for what you deem, my poor clothing choices, I happen to like the way that I dress."

"Well, I happen to not." She flashed the shorter girl a smirk before taking her seat in front of the computer.

O

"I was wondering, just how long will it take in order for us to get to your leader?" Rachel asked as she watched the monitor in front of her, she was now seated in the control panel room with the others on the ship. Her eyes focused on the map.

Finn shrugged his broad shoulders. "We should be there soon. It's about three hours away."

Santana slammed her hands down on the arms of her chair pushing herself out of the seat. "I'm gonna go take a shower, so you're in charge Hudson." She started to walk out of the control room, but before she could get out the door there is a loud beeping sound that filled the entire ship. Letting out a groan she turned back to the monitors, returning to her seat to check what is wrong with the system. "Looks like I can forget about that shower."

"What's goin' on S?"

"Looks like there's a gravitic space anomaly up ahead, I'm bringing us out of gravitic space to avoid it." She informed, as she typed quickly on the keyboard of the computer.

"You serious?" Finn asked, casting his brown eyes from one girl to the other. "You think it's hostile?"

"I don't wanna have to find out."

O

"We're back in conventional space." Santana informed, never pulling her eyes away from the monitor. Rachel noted that she seemed very intense about her job, even if her job was to be a criminal, that intensity was admirable. "Two Vendeeni battleships detected 400,000 Km ahead."

Finn sighed leaning back in his chair. "An ambush, eh? Man, it's bad enough having to worry about Federation ships. Let me talk to them."

Rachel felt on edge knowing that it was the Vendeeni, the same ones who had captured her fathers, the same ones who undoubtedly wanted to capture her as well. Her muscles tensed and her heart raced as she waited to see what Finn and Santana planned to do.

"Kay, hold on a sec." Santana said, activating the communication link. "Alright, connection confirmed, the communication link is open."

For a second the man looked dumbfounded as he stared up at the monitor with a look of confusion and uncertainty on his face. After a moment he began to speak. "Uh, hey. This is the Eagle, a Klausian ship. We don't want any trouble with ya."

Rolling her dark eyes the Latina placed her hand on her forehead. "You're wasting your time. The enemy ships are already prepared to attack."

"Seems they know who we've got onboard." He said, looking to Rachel. "Escape's our only hope. It'll be tough though without using gravitic warp, but we got no choice. Reverse course! Conventional engines, full power!"

"Gotcha!" Santana said, typing the commands into the computer.

"Full power to rear shields!" Finn shouted, and the windshield shutters closed. "And lemme see a chart for this region."

A map of the region popped up on the monitor and he observed it, his eyes even more squinted than normal as he thought. "Hmm… Alright, course 116, mark 267! Activate auto-evasion program! Fasten crew safety harnesses!"

"Right away." Santana stated again typing in the commands. "Course entry complete. Speed, maximum, program activated."

Rachel's brown eyes widened and she let out a squeak of surprise as she felt her harness extend out of the chair with little warning and connect over her chest, holding her in place. Suddenly, the Eagle tilted to the right and all of the blood traveled to one side of her body, it was terrifying and she closed her eyes, wishing that it would all just be over.

The ship shot through space and Rachel actually screamed out.

After a few minutes Santana spoke up again. "Nearing the objective point." Rachel had no idea how she could sound so calm about the situation, her eyes were still sealed tightly.

"As soon as we're there, go into gravitic warp." Finn informed.

"Hudson, gravitic warp is currently nonfunctional."

"I got a hunch it'll function the moment we reach the objective point. Get us on a straight line between the ships and that planet, then pop us up star-side. We'll open up the distance that way."

"Alright." Santana said hesitantly. "But we won't be able to designate our warp destination."

"Well, we're toast if we stay here, S. Anyhow, space is big right? Our odds ain't that bad." Finn said with a goofy half grin and a laugh.

Rachel cautiously opened her eyes to stare at the man sitting beside her, he was being ridiculously immature. "You are basing this all off of a hunch?" He nodded and her heart raced even faster.

"Seven seconds to objective point." Santana said. "Warp engine damaged, but still functioning."

Finn smiled. "You bet it is! Activate gravitic warp!"

O

"We've thrown off the Vendeeni ships." Santana said.

Finn let out a sigh, falling back into his chair. "That was close."

"Yeah, it was, you're lucky, this time being a dumbass actually paid off." The Latina laughed shaking her head and fixing her hair, before typing into the computer again. "Hmm, but now it seems we're pretty far from the meeting point."

"Well, it couldn't be helped. Besides, it won't hurt to make them wait a little longer. Let's just take our time." He closed his eyes and relaxed.

Rachel was now alert, her eyes wide as she looked around at the space surrounding them. She was still stunned that Finn's hunch had actually been accurate, let alone that they had escaped the Vendeeni, it had not been easy for the Federation to do so and their technology was far more advanced. "It seems that your hunch really did pay off."

Finn looked to Rachel and nodded. "Finally, some respect."

Rachel caught his brown eyes with her own, and laughed under her breath. "Yes, a healthy respect for your recklessness."

He looked dumbfounded. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Santana spoke up, interrupting their conversation with a disgusted look on her face. "Sorry to interrupt you while you're having so much fun, but the gravitic warp core is overheating. We should reduce speed immediately. The engine will be destroyed if we don't."

"What?" He asked shocked. "Get back into conventional space, now!"

"Gotcha."

O

"Bad news."

"Now what?"

Santana looked over the computer before responding. "Both the conventional and gravitic warp engines have been destroyed. The backup engine isn't functioning either. I'd say we got a problem." Her voice held concern.

Finn sat up in his chair and looked over her shoulder at the screen. "Damn it!"

There was a brief pause, Rachel watched as Finn appeared to be thinking about what they should do as he examined the monitor. Then after a moment he spoke up. "Where're we now?"

"We're currently within Elicoor II's gravitational field."

"If all our energy sources are shot, then we can't communicate either. Well, I'm sure that they'll figure out something happened to us after we don't show up when we're supposed to." He stated nonchalantly.

"I sure as hell hope so." Santana said.

"Well—" Finn started before sitting back down. "Santana, come up with something."

"I'll see what I can do."

Rachel looked from Santana to Finn. "What could we possibly do if all of the engines are destroyed?" Her panic was evident; she did not understand how they could be so easygoing about something so dangerous.

Finn looked to her. "Well, for starters, we gotta land before we crash. Then, we wait to be rescued."

Full lips parted and brown eyes widened as he told her the plan, it did not sound too far away from where she was before, when her escape pod crashed. In fact it was exactly where she was before. Leaning back in her chair she crossed her arms over her chest and let out a puff of air, her dark bangs flying up as she did so. She was definitely frustrated. "Sounds like a magnificent plan, I could have never thought of something that ingenious."

"Look, my mission is to bring you to our leader. Until then, I'll watch out for you, trust me. You're safe as a turtle in its shell." He nudged her shoulder.

She continued to pout and look away from him, her full bottom lip extended as she sulked. "A turtle dropping out of orbit perhaps, I don't think that its shell would be much use."

"Huh? Did you say something?"

"No, nothing."

Santana interrupted their banter. "God, can you two just shut the hell up? We'll be entering into Elicoor II's atmosphere in another thirty seconds. Get ready for a bumpy ride, you two."

O

A man stared up at the sky as a giant machine fell from the clouds, crashing toward the ground. He had never seen anything like it. "What is that thing?" He screamed out, running toward it as it landed in the center of the city.

All of the townsfolk gathered around the ship, staring at it and pointing.

"A star, fallen from the sky?"

"Nonsense! It looks nothing like a fallen star!" Someone shouted.

"What is it then?"

Inside of the ship, Rachel Finn and Santana were all staring at the monitor that showed the people observing the Eagle.

Rachel was busy recalling what the computer in her pod had told her about affecting underdeveloped planet's history with their technology; she had a terrible feeling in her gut that this was what the computer had been talking about. This city would now study the ship, they would write about it falling from the sky for years to come. "We landed directly in the middle of a city." She muttered.

Finn nodded. "Yeah, not to mention we're outta power. I guess we should just be happy to be alive."

She nodded, knowing that it was the truth. Rachel could worry about breaking the law at a later time period; currently they needed to focus on surviving and escaping the planet. "You are correct, what do we do now?"

They were interrupted as soldier's surrounded their pod, staring at it.

"What's this?" One of them asked.

"I don't know, never seen anything like it."

"One of Aquaria's new weapons?"

Santana tapped her fingers against the dash. "We seem to be surrounded by a group of local soldiers now, what should we do?"

"Not much we can do with the Eagle scrapped like this." Finn said, trying to think of a solution. "Fighting our way out isn't really an option either. Maybe we should just step outside and see what happens." He laughed shrugging his shoulders and standing from his chair, stretching his long arms.

Rachel stood to her feet and stared up at him. "Hold on just a second! Even minimal contact with the inhabitants of an underdeveloped planet will get us into trouble with the Federation." Pausing she looked to the monitor watching the soldiers tapping on the glass. "Besides, we have no idea what they will do to us once we get out there."

"You got any better ideas? I hate to point this out, but I think we've already made contact."

"Yes, we have, but still—"

"—don't worry. I've gotta hunch they won't kill us right away."

She knit her brows together and looked up into his eyes. "Another hunch?"

He wrapped his arm around her small shoulders and led her toward the door of the ship. "Oh come on, trust me. Didn't we make it here safely? I tell you, my hunches are always right!"

Santana stood as well. "How bout that time when we almost crashed into that asteroid 'cause of a hunch of yours?"

"Aw, but that was ONE time!" Finn whined playfully.

Rachel's large brown eyes widened and she panicked again. "One time?"

Looking down he smiled at the small diva, it was almost humorous how short she was next to him, it was difficult for him to even wrap his arm around her shoulders. "At any rate, I don't think we have any other choice, so come on."

"What do you think that they will do to us?" She asked him.

"Well, we'll probably be taken prisoner."

His nonchalance was really starting to annoy the perfectionist, she hated to do things without thinking them through and she hated to put herself in unnecessary danger. Jesse would be so upset if he could see the risks that she was taking. "You say it as if you do not even mind being taken captive."

"It's no big deal really; I guess as a criminal you always expect it." Finn said. "But, only you and I will go out. S, you need to wait until later to make an escape, stay until it gets dark, then sneak out."

Santana nodded. "Right, that should be easy enough."

"Will Santana be safe on her own?"

"You're forgetting she's a Klausian. She'll be fine. I kinda pity the soldier that tries to take her in."

Santana smirked confidently, she was obviously proud of her fighting abilities. "Do you guys want me to come rescue your asses after I escape tonight?"

Finn waved his hand. "Nah, no need. There'll probably be too many of them, anyway. We'll think of something. You scout around and find a way to contact the boss. Don't put yourself in danger trying to save us. We just gotta make contact with them and they can come and get us."

"Got it." Santana agreed.

"All right, come on Rach, time to go."

"Hey, there's something moving!" A soldier shouted out.

"What!"

"Is that a-a person?"

Rachel and Finn both made their way out of the ship with their hands held up in the air, in order to show the people of the planet that they held no hostility toward them, that they were surrendering. The soldiers moved closer to them, hesitantly.

"There's people in there! Get em!"

O

A man with short curly hair sat at the throne, his hands on his lap and his legs crossed. He stared down at the soldiers who had approached him with some news. "Well, what was it?"

One of the soldiers spoke up, placing a hand over his heart. "We believe it to be a new Aquarian weapon, your Majesty. We have the two crewmembers locked up in the dungeon."

"Very well. Continue with your investigation, and step up the pace of the invasion of Arias. If the enemy has indeed brought a new weapon into active service, then time is of the essence." The king informed.

"Your Majesty." With that the solider left the throne room.

He looked to the redheaded woman standing beside his throne; she smiled shyly and caught his eyes. "What do you think, Emma?"

She lifted her pale hands, fidgeting uncomfortably as she thought it over. "Um, well, if this object that has uh-fallen on our city is truly a new Aquarian weapon, then I think that uh—I think that we are in trouble. Aquaria has shown an admirable ability to wage war as of late."

"Elma here appears to lack confidence." An older blonde woman said, approaching the king. "Airyglyph has your storm Brigade cavalry, Sebastian's Black Brigade heavy cavalry, and my winged Dragon Brigade for good measures! They stand no chance in hell against our legions. Their weapons have proven themselves to be little to no threat to us. Anything they throw at us, we can return."

Emma looked to the other commander. "Pride comes before the fall, Sue. Surely a measure of prudence would um do us no harm. Right, Sebastian?"

The youngest of the group smirked, his maniacal smile spreading clear across his face and his blue eyes shimmering with excitement. "If they're the enemy, we kill them. If they aren't, we dispose of them. Simple as that."

"If only things were um—as simple as you say." Emma said uncertainly.

Sue rolled her eyes in agitation, throwing up her arms. "Regardless, we have yet to see ANY evidence that the object is a new Aquarian weapon at all. My men have already begun to interrogate the crewmembers. They'll talk before long."

Emma's large brown eyes widened. "The inquisitor? She always seems to enjoy her work a bit too much."

Sue shrugged. "She is the best."

"As long as they do not uh—die before they talk. We are not barbarians Sue, even prisoners have certain rights, you know."

"You speak absurdities, ginger. Prisoners have no rights! We'll hurt them until they squeal, if they die as a result, then so be it!"

Emma still looked unsure. "I am willing to do what is necessary, but I just um—I just think that your men have a tendency to take things too far."

Sebastian was growing agitated as the older women argued. "What's the big deal? Just find out whether they are enemies or not. If that's too much trouble, I'll be happy to take care of them."

Sue nodded and smiled approvingly, turning her attention to the man sitting upon the throne. "Alright, don't worry m'Lord, if we do have to kill them, we'll make sure they cough before they croak."

He nodded. "Alright, now is not the time for us to haggle over such matters. Sue, continue your interrogation. Emma and Sebastian, return to your posts. We are counting on your knights. You are the pride of our great Kingdom."

"Yes, Sire."

O

"Why don't you just spit it out!" The blonde woman shouted out angrily, almost psychotically, she had long hair and crazy blue eyes. Calming down she took in a breath and stood up straight, pacing in front of Rachel. "Play nice, and we promise to treat you right." Her voice was soft and sweet now.

Rachel still did not say anything; she simply stared at the older woman, wondering what she planned to do. Suddenly, the blonde lashed out grabbing ahold of Rachel's chin and holding it up staring her straight in the eyes. "That thing you were hiding, what was that? A new Aquarian weapon?"

"Aquarian?" She muttered out, despite the pain she felt in her jaw.

"Answer the question."

"I already informed you, I do not know."

She cocked her head to the side. "Sure, you don't. Maybe I need to play with you a little and see what happens." Pulling away from Rachel she extended the hand with the whip preparing to once again lash the young brunette.

Rachel could not handle the stress anymore, and she fell unconscious.

"Hmm? Damn, she fainted on me. And it was just getting fun!" Letting out a sigh, the blonde backed out of the cell. "See you again soon, my little kitten."

O

Rachel's ears perked up as she heard a soft scratching noise, opening her eyes she stared directly into the small beady eyes of a rat. Her eyes widened and she screamed out, jumping to her feet and climbing on top of the bed in the small cement cell. Staring down at the rat, as she dusted off her clothing, knowing that there was little point, her clothes were already ruined.

"You alright?" A voice shouted out, it took a moment, but she recognized it as Finn's.

"Yes, I am alright." She responded, loudly. Her stomach ached and she lifted her shirt slightly, revealing many welts that had formed across her toned abdomen where she had been struck by the whip.

"You don't look like you're doing alright."

Rachel's head snapped up and she witnessed Finn standing in the same cell as her, how had she not noticed? Hastily she lowered her argyle sweater covering her stomach. "As if you can talk." She muttered, seeing that he looked to also have welts on his body.

"Well, yeah, but I'm more used to torture than you are." He said, flashing her that goofy grin as he ran his hand through his hair. "You held up pretty well though, didn't give anything away."

"What exactly could I have given away Finn? It is not as if they would have believed me if I informed them that I came from outer space."

"Good point."

Rachel sat down on the bed now, placing her hands on her lap as she looked up at him with a confused look on her face. "Why did you allow them to capture you? I mean, you could have easily escaped, correct?"

Finn sat down beside her. "Nah, it woulda been too much of a hassle."

Cocking her head to the side, she knit her eyebrows together. "A hassle?" She wondered.

"Yeah, a pain in the butt. I couldn't just leave you there, anyway, and I kinda wanted to see what was going on first hand, you know?"

"In that case, did you find anything out?" Rachel asked.

"As a matter of fact I did!"

She grew excited momentarily. "Really, what?"

"The whips on this planet hurt, too." He laughed as Rachel rolled her eyes at him and crossed her arms in frustration.

"Ha. Ha. Aren't you just hilarious." Rachel muttered sarcastically, looking away from him as a silence filled the air. For a moment she pondered what the interrogator had been asking her. "Do you have any clue what Aquaria is?" She recalled the word.

Finn looked dumbfounded. "Aquaria?"

"Yes, that woman who was interrogating me continuously mentioned Aquaria. She kept referring to the Eagle as a new Aquarian weapon."

"Must be the name of their enemy or somethin'."

"So, what does that mean exactly? They believe us to be spies?"

"Yeah, I think that's what they think." Pausing Finn looked to the bars of the cell. "Now, how the hell are we gonna get out of here?"

O

"Do you suppose that Santana escaped unharmed?" Rachel asked, as they sat in the cell together. They had been there for quite a few hours and still had not managed to figure out a way to escape.

"Yeah, dude, she'll be fine. Like I told you, she's a Klausian. I bet she snuck off into the city a long time ago."

"I hope that you are correct." She said as she placed her head in her hands and thought over everything that had happened recently.

Rachel had been a normal young Earthling who had everything going for her. She had her best friend and her fathers, she had the opportunity to travel into space in order to go to college for musical theatre, and she had lost it all. Her body shook as tears started to form behind her eyes. "How am I supposed to rescue my fathers trapped like this? I do not even understand why the Vendeeni captured them, but I doubt that they are showing them much hospitality."

Finn reached out, placing a hand on her shaking back, attempting to comfort her. "Hey, cheer up Rach. Somebody'll show up to get us outta this place soon enough. Then we'll be well on our way, you'll see."

"And who would that somebody be exactly? You told Santana that she should not bother coming in after us, and it is not like we know anyone else who lives on this planet. I highly doubt that your leader has found out about what happened to us as of yet—"

"—they're here already."

Brown eyes widened and Rachel turned to look up at him. "What? Who is here?"

One of the soldiers who was guarding the cell fell to the ground, dead. Followed by another, then another, Rachel stared. Suddenly, a young woman approached them, holding two short swords that were covered in the blood of the soldiers. She was gorgeous. The woman had shoulder length blonde hair that was untamed, intense and serious hazel eyes, pale skin, high cheek bones, and perfect pink lips. She was wearing a scarf that covered her long neck, and armor that revealed quite a bit of her toned arms and creamy thighs.

Finn stood to his feet, staring her down. "Friend or foe, I dunno, but there's somebody here."

O

Authors Note

I got quite a few reviews! Thank you all so much. So I decided to give you all another long chapter quickly. Hopefully you will all like this, and please do leave reviews and I will get another one up by tomorrow.

Thank you all for reading.


	7. Coveted Technology

Until The End Of Time

Disclaimer: I own nothing. These characters belong to the creator of Glee and Star Ocean Til The End Of Time.

Pairing: Rachel/Quinn

Rating: M

Chapter Seven

Coveted Technology

The blonde stood still in front of Finn and Rachel, staring them down with serious and almost terrifying eyes. Her voice was deep, monotone, and uncaring as she spoke up. "You have two options: accept my conditions and live, or refuse, and die here. Those are your choices."

Rachel's face covered with panic as she looked to Finn for protection, he was obviously the more advanced fighter of the two. She did not know who this woman was, but she appeared to be from the less advanced time-period considering the outfit that she was wearing and the way that she spoke, still, she had watched the blonde kill all of the soldiers so she knew how to fight.

Finn walked forward, standing protectively in front of the short brunette, looking down into hazel eyes. "Dude, what kind of options are those?"

Staring up at him she spoke, voice even. "The correct choice should be obvious."

He cocked his head to the side. "So, what are your conditions?"

"I want your help. That is all."

Now both of them looked confused, how could they possibly help this woman who lived on the underdeveloped planet? "Our help?" Finn questioned.

She nodded. "That's right. You two were riding that lump of metal that fell down from the sky, correct? We want your technology."

Now it was all making sense, and Rachel took this opportunity to stand up to the woman. She knew that Finn did not care about the Federation seeing as he was not under their rule, but she still was, and the last thing she needed was to escape this planet and be imprisoned by the Federation. "We cannot let you have that." She said, staring up at the beautiful woman. Forcing her confidence as she lifted her chin and held her ground, even if the blonde was terrifying.

"Why not?" She asked, with a raised eyebrow.

"Why not?" Rachel asked, surprised that she did not understand, but as she attempted to explain it she found that it was not that easy to do so. "Well, um—" She could not tell her about the Federation.

Finn interrupted her stammering. "What would you do with our technology, if we gave it to you?"

"We'd use it to end the war that rages between this country and mine. With our side victorious, of course." She said with a smirk on her pink lips.

"Hold on a minute, your country?" Rachel asked, eyebrows knit together in confusion. She had assumed that it was someone from this city. "So, you are not one of the people that imprisoned us in this cell?"

"No." She said simply. "I am not from Airyglyph. I am from Aquaria."

'_She has a really unique voice… it's beautiful… okay, no Rachel, now is most definitely not the time to be thinking these things, she is the enemy!' _Forcing her strange thoughts away Rachel recalled what the blonde had said, and she remembered being interrogated. "Aquaria? The interrogator kept mentioning that name earlier." She told Finn.

Finn flashed that dorky half-grin and nodded his head. "Makes sense, now."

"If you have been interrogated, I wouldn't think you'd have any particular loyalty to Airyglyph. Why not help me?" The mysterious woman asked. She still had not moved.

"Good point. We'll help you." He said with a shrug of his shoulders.

Rachel clenched her fists at her side and walked around Finn so that she was staring up at him. "What are you saying! We cannot help her it is against—"

Finn looked over the short diva's head to the blonde woman and smiled. "—give us a minute, alright?"

She nodded and watched them closely as Finn and Rachel walked to the opposite side of the cell in order to obtain privacy.

"Has anyone ever told you that you talk way too much, Rachel?"

"Well yes, on numerous accounts actually, but I do not understand what you are thinking right now Finn. She wants our technology. This is against the Federation's laws and although you do not care to follow them, I still do—"

"—Okay, can you just shut up for a minute, I can't think."

Rachel did as she was told and pressed her full lips together, forming a flat line and staring up through her long lashes at his squinty brown eyes, waiting for him to explain himself.

"C'mon Rach, you saw this civilization's level of technology. Look, all they need is a little math and science, and even if I don't know much about that stuff, you're a college student right?"

She nodded.

"See, so all you gotta do is explain that stuff to them and they will let us go."

"But the Federations laws state—"

"—dude! You need to seriously lighten up! You don't gotta follow every single rule, just have a little fun, geez, you are just like your—"

Rachel looked confused as Finn stopped speaking. "Just like who exactly?"

"Huh? Did I say something? Never mind."

"I'm minding."

Finn let out a groan of frustration at the small girl's persistence, she did not seem to ever want to drop a subject and she rambled on and on about the laws, it was irritating. Half the time he found it was easiest to just tune out what she was saying. He couldn't wait to deliver her to the boss and not have to listen to her anymore. "Just forget about it. Listen, based on what she said, we must be in Airyglyph right now, and this place is at war with her country, Aquaria. You with me so far?"

"Yes."

"Good. Okay, both sides think we've got some kinda unknown technology. Well, that makes sense right? A big flying metal thing did land in the middle of a medieval town, what else could they think?" He paused to laugh. "Anyway, even if we don't cooperate with her, Airyglyph will want our help too, and I doubt their terms'll be any better."

"I agree, but—"

"—so, what I'm saying is, if we're gonna cooperate with someone, it might as well be that hot chick over there, know what I mean?"

Rachel's large brown eyes widened and her full lips parted at his words, she blinked up at him a few times, ignoring the strange feeling of jealousy that made her stomach twist into knots. After a few moments she managed to speak up, shaking the strange feelings. "I cannot believe this. Seriously? That is your reasoning behind going with her? You are insane." _'She is very attractive though…'_

"Well, okay, let's just say that was a joke. Either way, we can do whatever we want once we're outta this place. We'll just wait for our chance and make a run for it. We're not doing much better here in prison, and if we die here, who's gonna rescue your dads, huh? I figured you'd wanna see them in this life, not the next."

Rachel thought it over for a moment and then she let out a sigh of defeat, not usually one to give up on her beliefs. "Alright, you win."

"Atta girl!"

Finn turned around and headed back toward the blonde, followed closely by Rachel. "We talked it over and we decided we'd help you. Now get us outta here."

The blonde smirked and lifted her pale hands over her head, they filled with a glowing green light and after a second or two of building up the energy she threw the ball of light toward the bars of the cell. The giant ball of energy melted through the metal, and Rachel and Finn exchanged looks of shock and awe at the sight.

O

"Thanks for getting us outta there." Finn said with a grin, obviously flirting with their "savior."

"Yes, thank you very much. We are most appreciative."

The mysterious woman looked first to him, and then to Rachel, catching her brown eyes with hazel. For a moment her features seemed to soften, but then she returned to looking cold and serious. "No thanks needed. I am just doing my job, but I'm going to hold you to your part of the bargain."

"What do ya mean?" He asked.

"You said that you'd cooperate with us. Don't think you can just wait for your chance to run, because I won't let you. If you try, I will kill you."

Rachel looked to Finn and whispered. "I think that she heard us."

The blonde walked ahead of them, turning to look over her shoulder at the others. "I should thank you for calling me hot, though, chick I could have lived without."

Finn looked confused. "Dude, this girl is scary."

"From now on you can call me by my name. I am Quinn Fabray, an agent for the Sacred Kingdom of Aquaria."

"I am pleased to meet you Quinn, my name is Rachel Berry and this is—"

"—Finn Hudson." He interrupted.

Quinn almost felt as if the two were fighting for her attention, it was almost adorable. She was well aware that she had this effect on both men and women. "Rachel and Finn, my pleasure. So where are you from, and what is that metal thing that you came here in?"

Rachel looked up to the tall man, whispering out as quietly as possible. "What do we tell her?"

"Just follow my lead, I'll handle this."

Finn walked forward, now standing beside Quinn, looking down at her and speaking in that same flirtatious tone. Rachel could not understand it, but it again caused her to feel jealous. "We're from a country on a continent far to the east of here. It's a pretty small country, so nobody's really heard of it, but we've got some pretty solid technology."

She looked up at him. "From the east? One of the countries in Greeton?"

"That what you call it here?" He asked. "Yeah, that's where we're from. We're engineers out there."

"What are engineers from Greeton doing in Airyglyph?" Quinn asked, suspiciously.

"Well, the long story'd take all day, so I'll give you the short version. Rachel's dads got, uhh—captured by an enemy country. We were on our way to rescue them in this newly developed vehicle, but it broke down on the way and we ended up here."

"I see." The blonde stated, her voice not giving away weather she believed him or not. Still, Rachel could not help but admire how he twisted the truth and made it seem believable. Quinn walked ahead of them, running her hands through her medium length blonde hair. "So, you are from Greeton, I had thought as much."

Rachel caught up to them, standing on the other side of her. "How so?"

Turning she looked down at the small brunette and smiled. "There is no country on this continent with that level of technology. It was an easy conclusion."

"So, you're satisfied then?" Finn asked.

Hazel eyes lingered on Rachel for a moment longer then necessary as she looked into her large emotion-filled brown eyes, and over her beautiful face. The shorter woman was definitely unique in appearance; she had not ever seen anyone who looked like her on the planet. Looking forward again, Quinn shrugged her shoulders. "More or less. What I am sure of is that there is no way we can let Airyglyph have you. You must cooperate with us."

"Quinn? That is your name, correct?" Rachel asked.

"Yes?"

"What do you mean by cooperate? What technology did you want, exactly?"

Before Quinn could answer Rachel's question, there was a loud voice echoing throughout the dungeon. "What's going on down here? Hey, you, what are you guys doing out of your cells?"

The blonde pulled out her two short blades and took a few steps toward the guard. "They're changing the guards early. You two, do you have any fighting experience?"

"Don't worry about us; you could say we're above average." Finn informed.

"Speak for yourself." Rachel said, frantically looking around the dungeon for anything that she could fight with. "You might be capable of fighting with your bare hands, but I need some sort of weapon."

"I thought this might happen." Quinn said, before unsheathing Rachel's sword and handing it to her. "Here's your sword, I already got it back for you."

She stared down at the sword before smiling at the blonde and taking it in her hand. "Thank you."

O

Rachel was now wearing some of Quinn's clothing, and she would be lying if she said that she did not enjoy the feeling of their warmth and the beautiful scent that surrounded her. Of course, the blonde had not given her the clothing in order to make her feel these things, she had only given it to her so that she would not stand out in the city, but she was still enjoying it. _'What is wrong with me… why am I enjoying wearing her clothing to this extent…?' _

"Hurry." Quinn told them, leading the way down another hallway.

"How are we going to get out of here, there are so many soldiers outside." Rachel stated, worriedly.

"We'll get out through there." The blonde's hazel eyes landed on a vent in the roof.

"The ventilation shaft?" Rachel asked.

"I dunno if I will fit through that." Finn said, looking up at the vent with a look of concern on his face.

"Don't complain." Quinn stated in an almost harsh tone. "If we can get through there, it widens out a bit. We'll just have to squeeze through that first part." Pausing she turned to look at the two people standing behind her. The first person to go in was an obvious choice. Rachel was the smallest and the lightest. "Rachel, you go first. I'll bring up the rear."

O

As they crawled out of the vent, they were met with a large cavern, covered in ice and snow. Everything around them was frozen. Rachel looked around the area, confused as to where the vent had led them. "Where are we?"

"We're in the aqueducts that wind their way under the city." Quinn stated, as if it were common knowledge.

"Aqueducts, huh? Why is it all frozen over in here?" The tall man asked as he walked beside the two women, looking around as well.

"I don't understand why this comes as such a surprise to you? It IS winter, didn't you see the snow falling outside when you landed?"

"Hm, good point." He flashed her a grin and then lost his balance on the ice, nearly slipping and breaking the thin sheet of frozen water. Honestly, Finn had never had good balance, that was why he avoided anything that involved it, especially dancing.

Quinn turned to look at him, holding up a hand. "Careful. You're no good to us if you fall in the water and freeze to death."

"Scary Quinn." Finn muttered, looking to Rachel who was covering her lips and giggling into her hand.

Rolling her hazel eyes the blonde took control again, walking faster. "Come on, let's get moving. This way leads to the city."

O

The group made their way out of the caverns and into the streets of Airyglyph, all of them stretching and preparing for the rest of their journey. As Quinn started to again lead the way, Rachel ran to catch up to her. "Quinn, about what you were saying."

"Yes?" She asked turning to look at the small brunette over her shoulder.

"You were talking about our technology, but what exactly do you want us to do for you?" She wondered, eyebrows knit together as she stared deep into the other woman's beautiful eyes. Momentarily finding herself lost in them. They were enchanting.

Quinn chewed on her cheeks and squinted her eyes at the other woman before giving in. "I will explain, but remember, refusal isn't an option."

"Well, whilst I understand that I agreed to your terms before, I cannot say that I will tell you everything that you wish to know. I do not plan to tell you anything that I do not deem you worthy to hear, and also there is always a chance that we will not be able to do as you ask."

Now, the blonde was growing irritated with Rachel. "I told you in the dungeons that I required your technology, did I not?"

"Correct, you did, but what exactly does that entail?"

Her body started to shake as she stopped walking and turned to look at the shorter woman, staring her down with agitation written all over her face. Quinn would be the first to admit that she had an anger problem; she did not deal well with people going back on their word. "Look, if this was going to be a problem, Rachel, you should have asked me before you accepted my conditions. By agreeing to cooperate, even just to get out of the dungeon, you're bonded to me. Those were the conditions of your release, and I expect you to uphold them."

"I understand, but—"

"—or are you planning on breaking your word?" Quinn interrupted, stepping closer to Rachel who grew uncomfortable under her intense stare. Quinn was an overwhelming individual to be around she was learning.

"Look." Finn said, walking over to them. "You didn't even give us a real choice! You can live or you can die."

"So." She looked to him and then back to Rachel. "You won't cooperate."

"When did I say that?" He asked. "Whaddya say, Rach, let's help her out?"

Turning around quickly, she raised her chin and clenched her fists at her side, staring up at him as if he were insane. "What are you talking about Finn? What about the laws and the Federation?"

"Dude, this is hardly the time or place to talk about that."

"That may be, but still—"

"—excuse me." Quinn interrupted angrily. "Can we save the discussion for later? We're not exactly safe here. Of course, if you wish to head back to the dungeon, be my guest."

"No thanks." Finn said with a smile.

"Alright, then be quiet and follow me. I'll tell you everything when we get out of town. My people have a wagon waiting for us just outside of town; the exit is to the east. Let's go."

O

Authors Note

A slightly shorter chapter, I did not receive much feedback for the last chapter.

I hope everyone is still enjoying reading.

Thank you all.


	8. Runology

Until The End Of Time

Disclaimer: I own nothing. These characters belong to the creator of Glee and Star Ocean Til The End Of Time.

Pairing: Rachel/Quinn

Rating: M

Chapter Eight

Runology

Quinn led them out of town and through the mountains, Finn laughing and joking with Rachel who was looking around at the scenery cautiously. She was on edge. At the mountaintop stood two women who were dressed in outfits similar to the blonde's, standing beside a horse drawn wagon. Rachel did not like the idea of using animals in such a way, but she understood that this was an underdeveloped planet and that was more than likely their only means for transportation.

"Sorry I'm late." Quinn said as she approached the other women.

"Lady Fabray, our preparations are complete, ma'am. We can leave immediately."

"Nice work."

"Are these the ones, ma'am?" The other woman asked, looking to Rachel and Finn who were standing awkwardly, not really knowing how they should act or what they should say. It was strange to the small diva, she came from a place where most of the soldiers were actually robots, and yet these people appeared to be programed to act even more robotic then them.

The gorgeous blonde nodded her head. "Yes, they are engineers from Greeton, as we thought."

"So we were right."

"Yes, but we don't have time to kick back and chat now. Our pursuers are right behind us. If the Dragon Brigade shows up, we'll be in serious trouble." Quinn informed.

"Yes, ma'am." Both of the other women said in unison, entering the wagon.

Quinn turned to look at the two of them with hard hazel eyes and a harsh tone of voice as she spoke commandingly. "Get in the wagon. We leave immediately."

Finn entered the wagon first a dorky smile on his lips as he made a joke about traveling with a bunch of hot chicks; Rachel followed him into the wagon, her thoughts on Quinn. She was assertive, terrifyingly so, yet somehow that was something that drew her to the blonde. She could not explain her attraction toward her; it was something she had never felt before.

Rachel glanced out the window of the carriage, watching the fields roll by slowly. Her mind was racing with thoughts. Her ears perked up as she heard Finn beside her.

"So, you're all women, huh? I'm not gonna complain about that." He laughed.

'_Neither will I… Wait, what Rachel? Where did that come from?' _

"Aquaria is ruled by the Holy Mother of the Church of Apris. We employ many more women than Airyglyph." Quinn informed. Her eyes landed on the beautiful strange looking brunette who appeared lost in her own thoughts as she stared out of the carriage window, her face was covered in emotions of all sorts. She did not know what to think of it. No one from where she was from showed their emotions so freely.

"The Church of Apris?" Finn asked.

"Yes, the church of the Sun God Apris. The Holy Mother leads the church—and is also Queen of Aquaria." Quinn muttered only half paying attention to the conversation. The rest of her mind lost on the brunette.

"A theocracy." Rachel muttered softly under her breath.

"I gotcha." Finn said. "What you're saying is your country's packed with a bunch of hot temple girls. Now I have to see this place."

Rachel bit down on her full bottom lip and she furrowed her brows together, turning her attention back to the blonde, looking directly at her. "Quinn, I would greatly appreciate it if you would answer my previous question now."

For a moment she got lost in those beautiful eyes, but she quickly regained her composition, angry with herself for how her body reacted. "Right. But, before that, might I ask you one thing?"

"Most certainly."

"Are you two really engineers from Greeton?" Quinn looked from Rachel to Finn, suspiciously.

"Well, um…"

"Hey, you still don't believe us?" The young man interrupted before Rachel could do anything to give them away.

"It's not that. It's just…" Her voice trailed off and she thought for a moment. "The fact that you possess special technology and knowledge is clear to me—so, yes, it does seem likely that you are who you say. Still, something doesn't fit."

"And what would that be?"

"The way you respond to danger and your fighting ability indicate that you are not telling me everything. And you are certainly not average engineers. So you see, I believe my doubts are well founded." Quinn lifted a delicate hand to add to her verbal accusation.

"Well—" Rachel started.

Finn again interrupted the small brunette. "—Okay, you got a point. But it seems to me you're just gonna have to take our word. We got nothin' to gain by lying to you anyway. Wait, you don't think we're Airyglyph spies, do you? I mean they locked us up!"

Quinn nodded. "Yes, I see what you mean."

"But you still don't trust us?" He asked.

"No, I trust you." She assured. "In any case, I was ordered by Her Majesty to bring you to Aquaria. I must fulfill my duty."

"Well then, Quinn, please answer my original question?"

Quinn now looked back to Rachel and her heart skipped a beat as she watched the sunlight reflecting off of her perfect naturally tan skin. _'What is wrong with me…?' _"Yes, since you're unfamiliar with this region, I'll fill you in on the details while explaining our current situation."

"Please do." Rachel said, her full lips tugging up in a smile.

"The town that we just left is Airyglyph. Everything to the west of that town is in the nation of Airyglyph—a military superpower. Eastwards of the border is our country, Aquaria. You follow?" She raised one of her eyebrows.

Rachel and Finn both nodded.

"As I mentioned earlier, Aquaria and Airyglyph are at war. Airyglyph is a militaristic nation that reveres power above all else; Aquaria is a peaceful nation that worships the Church of Apris. Aquaria and Airyglyph maintained friendly relations until several years ago. But one day, they invaded our territory without warning. It seems they'd been planning their invasion for some time. Airyglyph is a frigid land ringed by mountains. Food production has never been easy here—especially in winter. We believe they were after our land, fertile with the blessing of Apris."

"A war of survival and aggression?" Rachel wondered aloud.

"Correct. There was no diplomacy, only outright military aggression. We resisted, but we were outmatched. Somehow, we managed to hold them back, but the border-town of Arias was laid to waste. Still, the war has not been completely one-sided. We may be lacking in military power, but we do have runology."

"Runology?"

"A secret art handed down by the followers of Apris. We inscribe special runes into our flesh that enable us to invoke normally impossible phenomenon… thus the name, runeology."

"Dude, now it all makes sense." Finn said with a dorky half-smile as he bumped shoulders with Rachel. "That's how she broke the prison bars."

Quinn smirked. "Correct."

Rachel looked at the markings on Quinn's exposed pale skin; they appeared to her mere tattoos. For a moment she pondered what this strange power reminded her of, it seemed oddly familiar to something from back home.

"Hey, isn't that like symbology?" Finn asked.

"Symbology! Correct, that is what it reminded me of." Rachel said.

"Symbology?" Quinn questioned, hazel eyes connecting to excited brown eyes that quickly filled with conflicting worry. _'She is like an open book; I can read everything she is feeling just by looking at her… so odd this one…'_

"Uh—never mind that. Just continue with your story." He said with an uncomfortable laugh.

"Yes, please do continue, I am curious as to what is stopping you from using this runology in order to keep Airyglyph back?"

Quinn was still suspicious, but she did continue. "There are only a few of us that can use runology. Far too few to help us stand up to Airyglyph. That's why we decided to develop a weapon that makes use of runology. It's a man-made weapon that uses the special energy evoked by runology as a power source. The engineers have named the energy 'Channeled Force.'"

"Channeled force?" Rachel wondered.

"Correct. It is similar to lightning. But there are still a number of problems preventing us from co-operating the weapon. Just when our research ground to a halt, we were informed about you two."

"So, you are asking us to aid in the development of a weapon that uses this channeled force?"

"Yes. That is correct." Quinn smiled softly at the small brunette.

Finn turned to Rachel in order to whisper in her ear. "Hey, I bet we could use their power to make us a communicator."

She contemplated this and found that it was a logical idea. "Yeah, a radio wave device, perhaps. If we can make that then we should have no problem getting home, but…" Rachel pulled away from whispering into Finn's ear in order to look at the gorgeous blonde seated across from her. "Quinn, I cannot do it. We cannot help you."

Her jaw clenched at this announcement and her muscles tensed as her eyes turned hard and her voice grew harsh. "Didn't I say refusal wasn't an option?" Her voice was deep and terrifying.

Large brown eyes widened. "But you are speaking about a weapon that will easily murder hundreds of individuals! I do not wish to have any part of that. Not to mention, we do not have any time to spare."

Quinn's hazel eyes softened. "I understand your situation—you need to hurry in order to save your fathers, correct."

"Correct."

"So, you admit this is a personal problem—not one that concerns us?"

"That is true, but—"

"—our country's in a state of war. Both the people of Aquaria and Airyglyph are dying, energy weapon or not. A quick end to this war will reduce the number of lives lost. That is why we need to complete our new weapon as soon as possible."

Rachel placed a hand to her aching forehead, messing up her bangs as she thought it over. "This is truly starting to remind me of my old Earth history lessons…" She muttered before glancing back at Quinn. "I comprehend your reasoning, and perhaps it will work, but even so, that is not a good enough reason for me to aid in building this weapon."

"So, you're going back on your word?" Her raspy voice cracked with frustration as her voice heightened. She sounded angry.

"That is coercion." She defended.

"Call it what you will. I already told you back at the prison I could not let you live if you refused to cooperate. I don't have anything against the two of you, but my duty comes first. And I don't need to remind you that you cannot help your fathers if you are dead."

Rachel stood to her feet, now standing over the blonde. "Now wait just a second, that is—"

Quinn stood up staring straight down into her eyes. "—what do you think Airyglyph would do if we abandoned you here? I wonder if you'd sing the same song after their inquisitor had her fun with you."

The brunette lifted her chin high and forced her shoulders back as she spoke confidently, trying to ignore the strange urges that she was currently having to get even closer to Quinn. "I would. I have already had a taste of it, believe me."

She raised a brow amusedly. "Confident, aren't you?" Her heart was racing as she glanced down to Rachel's lips, trying not to wonder what they would feel like against her own.

Finn now stood up and stepped between the two women, strangely enough they missed being close to one another, despite being upset with each other. "Hey, don't get all bent outta shape you two, just chill out!"

Both of them sat down. Quinn was wearing a smirk as she watched a pout form on Rachel's face as she crossed her arms over her chest and let out a puff of air causing her bangs to fly up. She was definitely not used to not getting her way.

"We have no other choice." The blonde finally spoke up again, this time looking to Finn. "Frankly, the war with Airyglyph will escalate unless something is done soon. If we could only complete the new weapon, the situation would shift in our favor. If that means that we must force uncooperative people into submission, then so be it."

"Is that the teaching of Apris?" Rachel bit back, still pouting.

Quinn actually chuckled a little at her childish behavior. "Of course not. The Sun God Apris and our queen would never wish such things. Yet if we do not act, they will find themselves lacking followers. Would you rather we submit to their swords, like lambs to a slaughter?"

"That is not what I mean."

"But that is what you are saying."

"You are simply twisting my—"

A scream from the front of the wagon interrupted their argument. Quinn stood to her feet and turned to look behind herself. "What is it?"

"We have company; I think it's the Dragon Brigade!" One of the women steering the horses shouted.

"They've caught up with us? Damn it, we were so close to Kirlsa too!"

Finn looked to Quinn. "What are you gonna do? Fight?"

The blonde shook her head.

"It would be best for you to slip off and find shelter in the rocks—we will lure them away." The woman in the front said with a smile.

Rachel now stood back to her feet, a look of worry on her face. "That would be too risky."

"Don't worry, we'll be fine. We've lost their kind before."

"But—"

"—I'm counting on you." Quinn interrupted Rachel, telling the other women to do as they said. Turning her attention to the prisoners she spoke. "Okay, you two, let's go."

O

Authors Note

Thank you to all of my readers.

If you leave me reviews I will make sure to have the next chapter up shortly!


	9. I Am Fine

Until The End Of Time

Disclaimer: I own nothing. These characters belong to the creator of Glee and Star Ocean Til The End Of Time.

Pairing: Rachel/Quinn

Rating: M

Chapter Nine

I Am Fine

Rachel, Quinn, and Finn found themselves hiding behind a large boulder, watching as the wagon continued down the path, being followed by a group of men riding on the backs of dragons. Rachel, for one, was astonished to see the creatures that on her planet were only a myth. She had heard that they existed on other planets, but had yet to ever see one, until now.

A blush formed on her cheeks as she felt breathing against her neck and ear, Quinn was crouched down beside her, watching the men on the dragons over her shoulder. The close contact was causing her body to react and she was finding it difficult to breathe. This was all so confusing for the small diva.

Once they were out of sight, Quinn moved away from Rachel, once again missing the warmth and contact with the other woman. "The Dragon Brigade…" She muttered to herself as she ran a hand through her blonde hair biting down on her bottom lip. "I feared they would show up sooner or later, I guess this proves how important you are to them. You must not be spies."

"That's the Dragon Brigade? Why are they called that?" Finn asked and Rachel gave him a look of complete confusion. It seemed fairly obvious.

Quinn ignored his remark about their name and answered his first question. Finding the look of annoyance and utter bafflement on Rachel's face to be oddly adorable, she looked prepared to throttle the young man with her bare hands at any second. "Yes, they are one of Airyglyph's three military branches—Knights riding powerful dragons. Not to be trifled with."

The blonde lifted a hand and signaled them to follow her. "Come on, while they distract them, we can go through Kirlsa and enter Aquaria territory."

Rachel reached out a hand and held onto Quinn's arm, putting a stop to her movements. "Wait a second. I have yet to agree to cooperate with you on this mission, and we cannot leave them here to fend for themselves. There is no way that they will be capable of escaping those dragon knights…"

Whipping her head around, Quinn moved closer to Rachel, staring her directly in the eyes. Her chest was heaving and she had a scowl on her lips. She looked extremely angry with the small brunette who just would not cooperate with her. "Yes, there is an extremely good chance that they will be caught. But there is nothing we can do about that, Rachel." She said spitefully, her breath rushing against Rachel's face causing her to visibly shiver.

Still, she would not allow these strange feelings to deviate her from the conversation at hand, no matter how badly she wanted to push Quinn up against the boulder and kiss her silly. She blushed at the thought. "What do you mean by that?" She asked.

"They knew the dangers of their mission when they accepted it."

Rachel did not know what to say to that, her full lips parting and then closing.

"If I became a burden to the mission, they would leave me behind in the same way." Quinn said, turning and starting to walk in the other direction once more.

The shorter woman was not about to accept that though, and she chased after the blonde. "Your mission? Is that all that this is to you; you do not have friends or feelings? What is the matter with you!" She exclaimed

"Hey Rach, just shut up, okay?" Finn asked, following the two of them.

"But…"

"Just save the debate for later, we gotta get somewhere safe first."

Rachel started to pout as she followed them, clenching her fists at her sides. She hated being told what to do almost as much as she hated not getting what she wanted, right now both were happening and she was not happy in the slightest.

Finn caught up with Quinn and looked down at her. "We'll be safer once we get to Aquaria, right?"

"Yes." Quinn nodded. "I can guarantee that."

"There ya are. So let's go there, then we can decide what's goin' on. Make sense to you?" He asked the diva who was still following far away from the two of them with a pout on her full lips.

"Yes, but still it is deplorable…" She muttered out under her breathe.

"You want those chick's sacrifice to go to waste then, Rach? No matter why they did it, they risked their lives to save us so how about you respect that and stop being so stubborn."

Rachel chewed on her bottom lip as she thought it over before nodding. "You are correct…"

"Alright, let's go." Quinn said.

O

"Ahh…" Rachel moaned out in pain as she lifted her hands to her head and she grew faint, no longer capable of vision. She blinked her eyes but all that she saw behind them was a bright whiteness. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest, thudding in her ears and sending waves of pain throughout her body as she fell to her knees.

Quinn turned to look at the smaller woman who was now kneeling down on the ground, fingers digging into her hair as she screamed out in pain. "What's wrong?" She asked with worry in her voice, she wrote it off as worry that she would not be capable of completing her mission and not worry that Rachel was in pain.

"My head… uhh…" She groaned out before her vision returned and she stumbled back to her feet.

"Are you sure you are alright?" The blonde asked, squinting her hazel eyes at Rachel who was now forcing a smile on her face as she nodded.

"Yes, I simply felt faint for a moment, I will be perfectly fine." She reassured her. Secretly happy to see that the other woman was concerned with her well-being, it made her feel special, especially considering that Quinn was fully capable of leaving her other friends to die without a flinch.

"We will be in Kirlsa soon." Quinn informed. "Can you make it that far? Would you like me to carry you the rest of the way?" She offered.

A bright red blush made its way over Rachel's cheeks and down over her neck and shoulders as she thought about Quinn carrying her to their destination. She dismissed the idea immediately, not wanting to look as though she were a weak child. "No, I am fully capable of walking on my own, I assure you."

"Very well." Quinn stated with a nod as she once again started to lead the way. For a second, Rachel thought that she saw disappointment on the other woman's beautiful face, but it was gone so quickly that she couldn't be certain.

'_But why would she be disappointed… don't be ridiculous Rachel…'_

Finn looked between the two women with a dumbfounded look on his face and then he shrugged his shoulders and followed after them.

O

Kirlsa was a quaint town, the roads and buildings made of stone, shops and bars lining the streets, but it was not what Rachel was used to. On her advanced planet everything was different. You did not have to go inside of shops and buy from humanoids for starters, you could just go to a sphere and look through an inventory, and choose what you want. Then it would materialize for you.

Everything was designed to make it so that you had to do as little work as possible.

Quinn turned to look at the two of them. "This is Kirlsa. If we can get through this town, we will be in Aquaria." She then turned her attention directly to Rachel, looking her over with worried hazel eyes. She hated that she was worrying so much about the small brunette, but she could not help it. She felt a strange inclination to protect her. "Are you sure that you are alright?"

"I am perfectly fine."

"You don't gotta act all tough for her Rach, you're not as strong as we are, so if you gotta rest—"

"—I said that I am fine." She informed him, growing agitated with being treated as though she were inferior to the two of them. Rachel knew that Quinn was just worried about her, but Finn was just being mean, saying that he was stronger than she was.

"Yeah, well, I'm just sayin' you don't look fine, kay?" Finn stated.

"I would prefer to just leave this town now, but that won't be possible with Rachel in this condition. Let's stay here tonight." Quinn said, speaking to Finn and ignoring the hurt look that crossed Rachel's face.

"What about those guys chasin' us?" The tall man asked, also ignoring Rachel who now looked angry and was pouting again, her eyebrows knit together as she stared from one of them to the other, waiting for her turn to speak her mind.

"We will be alright; we have nothing to gain by forcing a sick person to march."

"That's true." Finn said with a nod.

"And we're in luck. There is an Inn right over there, let's go." Quinn stated, starting toward the Inn, followed closely by Finn. Rachel marched after them, her hands clenched into fists at her side; she could not believe that they were ignoring her.

"I am fully capable of traveling!" She shouted.

They ignored her.

After they checked into the Inn, Quinn turned to look at the others in her party. "I will see you both later tonight, I have to go and check on a few things. I will be right back."

"Alright, but are you sure you should just leave us? Aren't you worried we'll just run away?" Finn asked her.

"No. You won't run out on me." The blonde said with a smile as she looked to Rachel, staring her directly in the eyes. "I trust you, remember?" Rachel could not help but feel that she was talking to her in a completely different context. But, she was probably overanalyzing things as she always did.

"Great, now we can't just leave ya here." The young man said.

Quinn chuckled and returned her attention to him. "I don't mind you walking around, just don't leave the town, and don't do anything—" She paused and squinted her hazel eyes. "—conspicuous. We are still in Airyglyph territory. There is no telling where the enemy is hiding."

"Gotcha." Finn said.

Rachel simply nodded her head, still upset that they had not listened to her.

"Rachel, perhaps you should get some rest…" Quinn added in a softer tone before leaving the Inn. Internally berating herself for caring so much.

Finn turned to look down at the small diva who was obviously still mad. He flashed her a half-smile and teased her. "So what you gonna do? Get some rest?"

"Do not worry yourself with what I shall be doing." Rachel stated in a matter of fact tone before turning and walking out of the Inn. She decided that if they deemed her unworthy of walking, then she would show them that she could walk. She did not feel sick at all.

Honestly, Rachel had no idea where she was headed or what she was going to do in the city, all that she knew was that she refused to lay down and rest. As she wandered around the city she found herself walking through a cemetery. There were no longer cemeteries on the planet Earth, they had outlawed them when they ran out of earth to bury the bodies, and she grew intrigued, looking around at the different plots, respectfully of course.

Suddenly she heard a woman's voice and she turned to look who it was, surprised to see that it was Quinn speaking with another woman.

"…according to our latest information." The woman stated.

"I see, they are up to the same tricks as always. Is it the Dragon Brigade?" Quinn asked.

"No, it's the Black Brigade. Of course, the Dragon Brigade is backing them up."

"I see. Good work."

"Whatever you do, please don't stick your nose where it doesn't belong. You know they plan to—"

"—be quiet!" Quinn silenced the woman as her hazel eyes made contact with Rachel who was watching the scene unfold beside one of the tall gravestones. Her large brown eyes wide with curiosity. "Go." She told the woman who obeyed her, rushing out of the cemetery.

Rachel cautiously approached the blonde.

"What are you doing out here?" Quinn asked the short brunette, a slight edge to her voice as she wondered what all Rachel had heard.

"Nothing really, I was simply passing through the cemetery and I witnessed you speaking with that woman…" She blushed slightly at the pang of jealousy that she felt, it was completely irrational, that woman and Quinn had nothing romantic going on between the two of them. _'Even if they did, Quinn does not belong to me in any way shape or form, so I have absolutely no right to get jealous!'_ "So, who was that woman you were speaking with?"

She looked over the blush on naturally tan cheeks, wondering momentarily what had caused it. "She works for me, gathering intelligence here in Kirlsa. I was just checking up on her."

"Is there something the matter? You appeared fairly grim…"

"Nothing unexpected. I have found out our pursuers are getting closer to this town by the second."

"That is all?" Rachel asked, not believing the taller woman. If that was the only thing that they were talking about she would not have silenced the other woman.

"Yes…why?" Quinn asked with a raised brow and pursed lips.

"No particular reason." She lied.

"We can't afford to waste any time here."

O

Quinn and Rachel arrived back at the Inn only to run into Finn who wore a confused look as he looked the two over. "You two were together?" He asked.

Rachel turned to look at the other woman and she bit down on her bottom lip, contemplating whether to tell Finn the truth, or to keep it a secret and protect Quinn. Finally she forced a show smile onto her lips and turned to look back up at him. "Yes, we ran into each other near the entrance of the Inn actually."

"Like she says." Quinn nodded with a small appreciative smile as her eyes landed on Rachel once more. She was constantly surprising her. It was like she was from an entirely different universe. So strange.

"Ah, I see." He nodded and then wrapped his heavy arm around the diva's small shoulders. This caused a strange reaction to occur for Quinn; she felt a pang of jealousy and anger as she glared at him. _'Only I should be touching her… wait, what? Damn it what is wrong with me!' _"So how ya feelin' now Rach?" Finn asked, looking down at her.

"Actually I feel quite alright, it was more than likely just the fatigue catching up with me."

He nodded. "Good, I hope that's all it was."

"I apologize for worrying you." Rachel insisted with a smile before glancing over to Quinn and catching her hazel eyes. "Both of you."

"Well, as long as you're okay, don't sweat it." Finn said.

Quinn glanced away; trying to force the blush to leave that was spreading along her pale skin. She was irritated with how her body was betraying her. "It will be night soon, so you should rest for today. Tomorrow we will pass through the Kirlsa Caverns."

"The Kirlsa Caverns?" The tall man asked, his arm still wrapped around Rachel's shoulders.

"Mineshafts to the North of town. We'll go through there to Arias. Now let's get some sleep, we leave early."

O

Authors Note

I hope that you all enjoy this chapter,

Please leave me reviews and I will get the next chapter up very soon!

Thank you all for reading. :)


	10. Secrets In The Night

Until The End Of Time

Disclaimer: I own nothing. These characters belong to the creator of Glee and Star Ocean Til The End Of Time.

Pairing: Rachel/Quinn

Rating: M

Chapter Ten

Secrets In The Night

That night it rained.

The weather was different than what Rachel was used to, growing up there had been few storms, and when there was a storm, she had always had her fathers there to bring her a glass of water and hold her until she fell back to sleep. Tonight she was alone, in a random Inn on a random planet, and her fathers had been abducted.

Suffice to say, she was not handling it well.

As thunder clapped loudly she let out a loud scream and buried herself in the covers, on the verge of tears as her body shook. A few minutes of silence passed by and Rachel's heart had finally slowed down when there was a soft knocking at her door and she let out another yelp.

"Rachel… It's me." A voice whispered out through the door, soft and calm. It took Rachel a moment to register who the voice belonged to.

"Quinn?" She asked, startled. She pulled the blankets off of her head and sat up straight in bed, staring at the door with wide brown eyes. Honestly, that was the last person that she had expected to hear was at her door. Finn, perhaps, although he did not seem like the most perceptive of people.

"Yes. Are you alright in there, I heard screaming."

The blonde sounded worried and it caused an odd warmth to spread throughout Rachel's body. Hastily she moved out of the bed and across her room, looking her body over to make sure that she looked presentable before opening the door slightly to peer out. What she saw caused her heart to stop and her breath to catch in her throat.

Quinn was standing in the hallway wearing very little clothing. Her outfit consisted of a small pair of shorts and a tank top, leaving quite a bit of her perfect creamy thighs and a sliver of her toned abdomen on display for the brunette. It was strange to see the strong soldier look so normal. Rachel blushed at the sight and looked away respectfully.

"I apologize for worrying you Quinn; no one was attempting to hurt me or anything of the sort." She blushed a little deeper as she admitted, "I am just scared of storms is all."

"With war, illness, and murder in this world, storms seem to be a foolish fear." Quinn pointed out. Her personality had not changed with the clothing; she was still just as harsh.

Now feeling embarrassed and weak, Rachel attempted to explain and defend her fear, looking up she stared into the blonde's captivating eyes. "I know that they are foolish fears Quinn, but where I am from there were few storms, but they were quite violent. My fathers would always bring me up a glass of water and lay with me until I fell asleep, and now I have no idea where they are or if they are even still living, so I suppose the storm is merely adding to all of my anxieties."

"I see." Quinn muttered out. Never taking her eyes away from brown.

A silence surrounded them for a few minutes as they simply stared into each other's eyes. Rachel did not know how to respond. She did not know if she should invite Quinn in or if she should ask her to leave.

"I could lay with you." When she witnessed Rachel's eyes widen and her blush spread down her neck and over her naturally tan shoulders, Quinn quickly explained. "I mean, only until you fall asleep. Like your fathers would, just so that you feel a little safer."

She eyed Quinn suspiciously, searching for any deception. When she found nothing but honesty on her face, her lips curved up and she opened the door wider. "I would appreciate the company."

Another bolt of lightning filled the air, lighting up the dark room, followed by loud thunder. Rachel ran back to her bed, burying herself in the covers. She was embarrassed to be showing this weakness to anyone, especially Quinn who she assumed found it childish and pointless. The blonde soldier appeared so strong. _'But she offered to stay with me… In my bed… oh goodness… She is going to be so close to me.'_

Quinn smiled softly as she climbed into the bed with Rachel, lying on top of the covers in order to keep some distance between the two of them. She tried to convince herself that she was only here to comfort the small diva, that she was not going to enjoy it in the slightest, but she already was. She loved just being around her and that was terrifying. She never cared to protect people. You lived and then you died, but the thought of Rachel dying made her physically ill.

"I'm right here Rachel."

Rachel lifted the top of the covers and peeked up at Quinn from beneath them. Just knowing that someone was there with her helped to distinguish her fears and she cautiously crawled out from under the blanket and rested her head on her pillow. Still looking at the other woman, she was beautiful even in the dark.

"Thank you for being here for me, Quinn." She whispered out into the darkness.

"You're welcome." Was the simple response. "Now, you should get some sleep Rachel. We have a long trip tomorrow and you weren't feeling well today." Quinn's eyes were fixated on the ceiling and she did not seem to want to talk any longer, but Rachel was alright with this. She was happy just having her near.

O

Rachel blinked her eyes a few times as the sun filled her room waking her from a deep sleep. Despite the storm, and the ancient bed that she was sleeping on, she had slept wonderfully.

The first thing that she noticed was that Quinn was no longer in her bed, this causing her to sit up and look around the room. It was not that she expected them to wake up holding each other, but in some ways she had hoped for it. In more ways than she was willing to admit. Pulling off the covers and crawling out of the bed she started to stretch her limbs and then caught sight of something on the nightstand out of the corner of her eye.

A glass of water. It made her smile.

O

"Quinn, can I ask you something?" Rachel asked the blonde as they all ate their breakfast in the diner downstairs. She found that she actually enjoyed a cooked meal, even if it was not as fast or affordable as the meals back home.

"What is it?" Quinn wondered, taking another bite of her bacon.

"Do you think that those women who we left behind got away from the Dragon Brigade?"

She noticed that the blonde cringed at the question before forcing a smile onto her lips and nodding her head. "They will be fine, Rachel. Those girls can fend for themselves."

Rachel chewed on her full bottom lip and nodded her head apprehensively. "I hope you are correct."

Quinn finished her meal and wiped her lips with her handkerchief before standing to her feet and pushing her chair in. Without looking directly at Finn or Rachel she told them. "Hurry up and get ready. Our pursuers are not far away."'

O

"This used to be a mine." Quinn explained as they walked through the dark caverns. "But they haven't dug here for decades… Not since the ore ran out. These days, it's only used as a passage through the mountains. But even that has become dangerous because of cave-ins and such."

These words did little to ease Rachel's fears as she carefully stepped through the cave. It was already nearly impossible to see, the ground was covered in a thin layer of liquid, and it smelt horrible. Now she had to worry about rocks falling on top of her? "I see."

Suddenly, the ground started to shake beneath their feet, nearly knocking them over.

"What was that?" Rachel asked as the shaking stopped. Her heart was pounding loudly in her chest and her breathing was rushed.

"I dunno." Finn said.

"Come on, we have no time to waste." Quinn told them as she once again led the way through the caverns. The group had to activate a lever in order to open the door where the hauler could come and pick them up. Rachel noted that the contraption was similar to the trains that they had back home; only they had to stay on the same course. The wheels seemed to be attached to the track. It was a bumpy ride to the end of the mine.

Near the exit, an old soldier approached the group and greeted them. "You came through on this hauler?" He asked them.

"Yes, we did." Rachel told him with a confused tone of voice. Who was this random man talking to them?

"Amazing! There are monsters prowling about, and the whole place has fallen into disrepair. There have also been some terrible rock slides and holes have opened up in some of the tunnels. It's a complete mess in there, you all are lucky to have made it through alive."

"If I may ask, who are you?"

"Oh!" He laughed and waved his hand. "I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Gregory von Dermein III, administer of these caverns. I'm a member of the Glyphian army. You can just call me Gregory though."

"Pleased to meet you Gregory." She said with a smile. Quinn glared at the young man and crossed her arms over her chest as she tapped her foot impatiently.

"Anyway, if you guys made it here on that hauler that must mean that the tunnels are clear."

Rachel nodded her head. "Yes, sir. There were quite a few dangerous parts, but nothing that prevented us from making it through."

"I see. Well then, I'll drive this one back. By the way, there is a wide expanse of wild-lands from here on, so be careful."

"You be careful as well, Gregory."

"Don't worry about me. I can still keep up with you youngsters."

"Come on, let's go." Quinn growled out, walking past the older man toward the exit of the caverns with Rachel and Finn right behind her.

They continued along the path for what seemed like days, Quinn was completely silent for the entirety of the trip whilst Rachel and Finn were goofing around here and there. After battling with the heat and the monsters of the mountains they finally arrived in a beautiful city. It was far more advanced than the last city they had been at, the buildings towering high above them, built from the finest materials that they could acquire on this planet.

"We made it. Arias—Aquaria territory." The blonde announced with a sigh of relief.

Rachel scanned the area and quickly realized that despite the advanced buildings the city was not perfect, a number of the houses had been destroyed. "Some of the houses look to have been destroyed…" She pointed out.

"Yes, that happened during the Airyglyph attack."

"Damn, they did alotta damage." Finn pointed out.

Quinn ignored his comment and pointed to a large beautiful building in the center of the town. "The mansion in the middle of the town is our base of operations here. We will check in there first." Rachel and Finn nodded their approval with the plan, and followed the blonde woman as she headed toward the large mansion.

O

Rachel glanced around the inside of the mansion, marveling at the beauty of it. On her planet, many people would simulate their homes to look similar to this one. It was a certain antique style that cost a lot of money. Following Quinn into what looked like some sort of conference room she immediately noticed that all of the people in the room were women dressed like the blonde.

Quinn approached one of the women, a beautiful Asian woman with blue streaks in her dark hair. "You are looking well, Tina."

The comment made the small diva's stomach twist in knots with unnecessary jealousy.

Tina's eyes brightened at the sight of Quinn and she rushed to her side. "I am so happy to see you have returned safely Quinn. When did you return?"

"Just now."

"Welcome home, you aren't hurt are you?"

"I am fine Tina; I see that you still worry too much." Quinn muttered out, frustrated with the other woman.

Tina sighed. "It's only because you're too reckless. If you don't want me to worry about you, you could try being a little more careful."

"That's the line of work I am in. It can't be helped." She shrugged her shoulders.

Rachel continued to watch the interaction with a clenched jaw and hands balled up into fists at her side, she was extremely angry and jealous and she could not rationalize the feeling. At this point she was aware that she formed some sort of crush on Quinn, but these feelings were so intense.

Tina turned her attention to Rachel and Finn and asked. "Are these the ones?"

"That's right." Quinn nodded, turning her attention to her companions. What she saw nearly made her laugh out loud. Rachel looked absolutely furious and she had a feeling that it was jealousy fueling the fire. She could tell that the short brunette was attracted to her, it was cute, but she was uninterested in starting a romantic endeavor. Especially with a prisoner. Still, she found it adorable the way that Rachel was scowling at Tina. "They are engineers from Greeton. They're still reluctant to help us."

"I see." Tina said as she approached the two foreigners. "I am Commander Tina Cohen-Chang of the Aquaria Runological Unit. I'm honored to meet you."

"The name's Finn Hudson." He said with a crooked grin and a nod of his head in her direction.

"My name is Rachel Barbra Berry." Rachel announced punctually. "I am pleased to make your acquaintance."

"I am very sorry for forcing our problems on you. However, you must understand our situation."

"Yeah, we got it." Finn said.

"Although, I am uncertain that we will be capable of—" Rachel started, only to be cut off.

"—I would like to hear what you have to say, and I will provide a thorough explanation of our situation as well. But, you must be exhausted. Why don't we continue this tomorrow? You need your rest." Tina smiled at them.

"That is right." Quinn said with a smile as she walked toward them. "She may seem fine now, but Rachel is still not feeling well."

She pushed her full bottom lip out and pouted a little at the comment. They kept treating her like she was weak, both Quinn and Finn, and she hated it. "I am perfectly fine."

The taller man beside her wrapped his heavy arm around her small shoulders, receiving a hazel-eyed glare at the motion. "Hey, never pass up a chance to take it easy, Rach. That was no joke goin' through those mountains."

"Alright…" She mumbled.

"There are two guest rooms upstairs on the second floor. Please feel free to use them." Tina said. "Quinn, stay behind. We have a lot to talk about."

"Right."

The jealousy returned to Rachel full-force as her head snapped up and she looked between the Asian Commander and Quinn. When the blonde glanced at her and smirked, a blush made its way along her skin and she turned and left the room.

O

That night, Quinn found her way into Rachel's guest room.

She did not join her, she did not say anything, she just stood in the doorway and watched the beautiful brunette sleep. She looked so peaceful and happy wrapped up in her covers and holding onto her pillow.

Rachel rolled over on the bed and revealed a small sliver of the tan skin of her abdomen and Quinn's heart practically leapt into her throat at the sight. Her body reacting oddly. She hated that Rachel made her feel these things, but at the same time she loved it.

Quinn watched her for longer than she should have that night.

O

Authors Note

Thank you for all of your wonderful reviews, they inspire me so much to add chapters quickly.

Please do keep encouraging me.

I hope that you all enjoy this chapter.


End file.
